


Maybe Salem Had the Right Idea

by RainCoveredLens, ToMarsAndBeyond3



Series: The Modern Fenrisulfr [2]
Category: Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency (TV 2016)
Genre: A lot - Freeform, Abuse, Broken Bones, Completely, Depression, Hope you like it!, I mean, I think that might be it, Kidnapping, M/M, Mental Abuse, Physical Abuse, Trauma, Werewolf AU, Werewolf!Todd, Werewolves, You might cry, and we'll put extra warnings in the headers, anyway, but we had fun, depictions of trauma, i cried, i'm not sure, it might be a tad rushed though, it's a little marvel, it's a little norse, it's a lot, it's a lot insane, it's fine, just like, like predatory creepy, lots of werewolves, mental manipulation, pretty painful violence, really though, sam doesn't think they're a dog person anymore, sarah really doesn't want anything to do with eggs anymore, so this one is a lot different than the first one, so we compensated with pain, there are parts that get creepy, trigger warning for intense violence and mental abuse, we butchered norse mythology, we cried a lot, we had fun writing it tho, we have a lot of repressed issues, we tried to make this realistic, we're warning you now, werewolf!rowdies, you will probably cry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-20
Updated: 2018-03-24
Packaged: 2019-04-05 05:13:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 124,216
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14036943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RainCoveredLens/pseuds/RainCoveredLens, https://archiveofourown.org/users/ToMarsAndBeyond3/pseuds/ToMarsAndBeyond3
Summary: The other Rowdies were covered in streamers too. Vogel had them stuffed in his pockets, and was leaving a literal trail as he got out of the van. Cross had somehow braided them into his hair, and considering that Gripps was holding the color that had been braided in, it was probably him who had done it. Amanda and Martin were the only ones with without some form of party decoration in their hair, and Todd suspected that they had been the ones to set off the explosion of the streamers in the first place. Martin nodded at him.“Nice to see 'ya, Pup.”





	1. Cabin in the Woods, But Not the Creepy Kind

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! And welcome back to Sam and Sarah Make it Worse! We had so much fun with the last werewolf AU we wrote that we decided to keep going! For how long? Who knows! Not us!
> 
> Just wanted to give you all a heads up. Part one is pretty chill, part two and three is when stuff starts to get crazy. And by crazy, we mean really, really bad. So if torture and mental abuse and all of that isn't your thing, please proceed with caution.
> 
> As always, we're really happy you all are here, and hope you enjoy! Please leave kudos and comments! We love hearing what you guys think!
> 
> Thank you!

**If Not For The Laws Of This Land, I Would Have Slaughtered You**

Dirk, at the moment, was laid out dramatically on Todd's desk.

He had been pestering Todd for the last hour, trying to get him to listen. Todd wasn't having it; he just wanted to finish his paperwork. They had just gotten off of a case with not one, but five different Greek gods, and the amount of belongings that had been broken or damaged were mind blowing. Even the Rowdies, when they came over once a month for the full moon, never made this big of a mess. Farah, the recipient of most of the damages, had left all of the paperwork to Todd and Dirk while she went to find someone to help her fix her apartment.

Where she was going to find someone to help patch a hole in her bedroom wall the size of a fully grown god though was beyond their knowledge.

She had been gone for only fifteen minutes before Todd had gotten a phone call from Amanda, letting him know that her and the rest of the Rowdies were driving into town. The full moon was tonight, and in all honesty, Todd and Dirk weren't sure if they had been planning on showing up at all. Most often they would come around a few days before the actual night of the moon, but Amanda had yelled something over the phone about witches  before she'd hung up.

She hadn't said how long they would be.

It wasn't often that they were actually alone in the agency. Ethan could usually be found either at his desk or begging with Bart over something they wanted to do, and he was currently out. Bart had dragged him somewhere two days ago, and they hadn't come back yet. It would be such a hassle to replace him if he died.

So they were left to do the paperwork alone. Dirk, however, had other plans.

He was lying directly on top of the papers Todd had been filling out; their computers were fried. He had his eyes closed, and his voice was grating against Todd's ears as he rolled his eyes.

“Dirk, could you maybe get off? We can't go to the cabin until we finish this.” Dirk made a dramatic sound, as if he had been mortally shot.

“You wound me, Todd.” Dirk put his hand over his forehead, and Todd got the urge to just roll him off of the desk. “This is a momentous occasion. We simply _must_ celebrate-”

“This is so not a cool thing to celebrate. I almost died.” Dirk waved him off dismissively.

“You always do that. That's nothing new. What is new is that you've been a werewolf for a year now, and you have yet to celebrate it.”

Todd snorted.

“Oh yeah. Let's just celebrate the fact that now I get beat up once a month. Real fun.”

“It is fun, I agree.” Dirk opened his eyes, smirking at Todd. “Besides, you didn't let me celebrate your birthday. This is the only possible way to make it up to me.”

“By celebrating the fact that someone bit me?”

“Indeed.”

“We should bring streamers.” Mona popped up next to Todd without warning, smiling as she inserted what she thought into the situation. Dirk yelped, rolling off the desk and smacking his head on the floor. Todd groaned as he brought his hand to hold his aching head as Dirk's pain leaked into him.

“Mona?” Todd squinted at her. “I thought you were the clock.” She shook her head.

“Time isn't important. I was a jellybean.” Todd blinked. Dirk could be heard groaning on the floor in front of the desk, out of sight.

“Well maybe don't be a jellybean. Someone could step on you.”

“I would just turn into something else, silly.” She laughed softly. “But I want to have a party. It sounds fun. I like fun. Fun is good.”

Todd sighed, leaning forward to try and organize the mess that was now his desk. The papers were scattered all over the floor, and all of his work that he'd gotten done was lost.

“Well, we can, have a party some other time. This is not that type of thing. Some guy nearly killed me.”

Mona tilted her head, her mouth dropping slightly.

“People always try to kill you. This isn't worse than that. You're alive. I'm alive.” She pointed to Dirk, who was now sitting up and frowning at Mona. “Dirk's alive. The nice one is alive too. We can have an alive party.”

“You can have it without me. _After_ the full moon.” Dirk clicked his tongue as he pulled himself up. There was a guilty look beginning to form on his face.

“Actually, Todd. I think I may have information that you won't like. Information that I was planning on telling you right before I hit my skull.” Dirk’s hair was ruffled from the fall, and even more from the fact that he was rubbing his head. “It's about your sister. And the van. And the party. And, also, Farah and the cabin.”

Oh no.

Dirk wouldn't.

“Dirk-”

“Before you say anything, Amanda was the one who suggested it! Well, I brought it up but she's the one who actually made it happen. Everyone helped! The Rowdies thought of games, they're not allowed to bring snacks. That was Farah. And Vogel and I spent _hours_ at the pet shop-”

“I, already hate this. So much.” Dirk gave him a bright smile.

Oh my god, Dirk was actually doing this.

“Too bad. We're doing it anyway.”

Todd fell back into his chair, rubbing his eyes. Dirk was just too much sometimes. Had he seriously planned a whole entire party? For Todd nearly getting killed a year ago? Couldn't they celebrate something else, like their anniversary or something like that? Something normal?

Jesus Christ.

“I'm going to, go out on a limb here and say that Farah wasn't actually out to fix her place.”

“Nope! Delivering the snacks to the cabin! Brilliant purchase, by the way Todd. Much better than that old campsite we used to use.” Dirk exchanged glances with Mona, who gave a smile. She put her hand up to talk.

“I helped pick out the colors.”

“I don't even want to know.” Todd peeked out behind his hands at Dirk, who was beaming. Now that both of them were in view, he sighed.

“I can't avoid this can I?”

They both answered at the same time, making their words hard to understand. Thankfully, Todd had long since learned to read the look on Dirk's face, though their Bond may have had something to do with that. Right now, he was absolutely delighted, which meant that there was no way Todd was getting out of this. He made a mental note to complain to Farah later that day.

The sound of a loud engine revving down the street followed by a loud crash alerted them to the arrival of The Rowdy 3. Great, now they were going to have to pay for whatever they had run into. Todd knew for certain that Martin was a superb driver, so he was absolutely convinced that he rammed into things on purpose. Then again, maybe Amanda was the one driving this time.

Amanda was as good a driver as Dirk, sort of. She'd never taken the time to learn, but at least she could stay on the road. With Dirk still in the picture though, she was only the second worst behind the wheel.

Dirk's head had swiveled around to the window, peeking behind-

Where was Mona?

Todd bent down to pick up the toy robot on the ground, taking care to place it softly onto the desk. Mona The Robot beeped at him, but then stopped, because plastic robots can't do that without any moving parts. Todd nodded. He heard Dirk squeal with delight before taking him by the wrist to drive him to the door.

“Do you hear that Todd? That means they're here. And _that_ means that we can have a celebration!”

“What the hell does a party with the Rowdies even mean?”

“Probably something violent. We'll just ignore that part.”

Outside, The Rowdy 3 were in a rare form. Was it possible for them to be louder than usual? Beast was the first one out of the van, and Todd didn't know whether to laugh or cry when he saw that she was covered in streamers. She waved with both hands at them, running at Dirk and knocking him to the ground.

“Bibbit!”

“Yes, that's me.”

The other Rowdies were covered in streamers too. Vogel had them stuffed in his pockets, and was leaving a literal trail as he got out of the van. Cross had somehow braided them into his hair, and considering that Gripps was holding the color that had been braided in, it was probably him who had done it. Amanda and Martin were the only ones with without some form of party decoration in their hair, and Todd suspected that they had been the ones to set off the explosion of the streamers in the first place. Martin nodded at him.

“Nice to see 'ya, Pup.”

Vogel bounded over, a wide smile on his face as he jumped on his heels. He had a poorly wrapped present in his hand.

Great. Just great.

“Hey man! Sorry we're late! We had this _wild_ thing going!” Amanda came up behind him, putting her hands on his shoulders as she grinned at Todd.

“You should have been there, dude. It was wild! We got at least fifteen guys at once!”

“Yeah! We gotta bring you and Brit along, Pup!”

Todd shook his head quickly.

“Uh, no, no uh. We're good here. Um, thanks. We, you know the, agency is a lot of work.” Vogel stared at him with wide eyes. “Thanks, for the offer?”

Vogel gave him a thumbs up.

Over by the steps, Dirk had wrestled his way out of Beast's grip, and was supporting himself while he caught his breath on the sidewalk. Todd wouldn't say Dirk was getting good at defending himself - just on the last case, he had lost a fight to a ten year old child - but he was learning how to stay out of Beast's reach. It made the full moons a lot more enjoyable when Dirk wasn't being stolen away by a fantasy creature with rainbow hair.

Cross patted Todd roughly on the back, causing him to stumble forward right into Vogel. The two fell to the ground, and Todd didn't miss the snickering coming from Amanda.

“Happy birthday, Pup.”

“It is, not, my birthday, Cross.” Todd glared up at him, only for him to shrug in response.

“You got bit. Same thing.”

“It really isn't.”

Martin took a step forward, reaching down to pull them up off of the ground. He helped Vogel up by the hand, but he pulled Todd up by a handful of fabric. Martin grinned as he took a step back, smoothing out his shirt.

Martin was wearing his new glasses. He'd always gone for the same style of frames, even after they'd all gotten back from Wendimoor, but after Farah had killed Priest he had chucked his glasses out the window, only to come back with an entirely new pair. They were a completely different style, and wouldn't answer up to why he'd changed so suddenly in the first place. They made him look cleverer. Yeah, he was a terrifying anarchist in a van, but he looked like a cultured terrifying anarchist in a van.

“Well you lot took your time.” Dirk strode over, trailed by Beast. Gripps was standing next to him, supporting him as he breathed heavily. “The moonrise is in only three hours!”

“Gotta say sorry, Brit. Ran into a mighty bit of trouble on the way.” Martin crossed his arms on his chest, frowning.

“Yeah!” Gripps piped up from where he was standing next to Dirk. “Real crazy guys! Magic!”

“They attacked the van, man!”

“Ain't nothin’ we couldn't handle.” Martin put out his hand to quiet Vogel and Gripps, and they lowered their voices at once. Martin, at least, had a little bit of control over them. This was especially seen when they were all shifted during the moon, since he was the pack leader. Dirk nodded along, and Todd groaned as he saw he'd put on his thinking face.

“Magic people?” He glanced at Amanda.

“Yeah. We think they might have been like, witches or whatever. But we haven't dealt with any of those guys since you dragged us into the rainbow case a few months ago. Not sure what they wanted.”

“Well, maybe, this is just a theory, but perhaps they wanted your interdimensional magic wand? That _is_ a thing that you own.” Dirk frowned.

Martin shrugged.

“That don't matter now. They ain't comin’ back for us anytime visible.” He backed up a bit to let Beast into the circle they had all formed. “'Sides. Ain't got time. Gotta get to that cabin. We ain't shifting without a party.”

“Yeah!”

Todd didn't have time to move out of the way as Gripps reached towards him, and a moment later found himself slung over his shoulder. He got an awful sense of deja-vu, and hit Gripps’ back as he pulled him towards the van.

“Yo! Dude! Gripps!” Dirk gave a thumbs up as Todd was carried towards the van, swearing at Gripps as he was thrown rather roughly into it.

“Hey! Don't I get a say in this!?”

“No way, Pup!” Todd was pushed into the far corner of the van as the vehicle was filled with the bodies of the others piling in. Altogether, that made eight people in the van, and it was just a little tight. Todd groaned, putting his head in his hands.

This wasn't fair.

Todd didn't raise his head as he felt Dirk slide down next to him, or as he heard the door slam shut and the engine start. Even as Vogel reached forward to pick the music, which was at a ridiculous volume, Todd decided to seethe in the corner instead. There was a poke in his shoulder.

“Todd?”

He didn't respond, and he could feel the frustration coming from Dirk as he was poked again, this time harder. He was poked again a third time, and then a fourth, and a fifth time.

“Todd? I know you're alive in there. I would know if you weren't.” When Todd continued his newfound vow of silence, Dirk leaned into him, resting his head on Todd's shoulder.

There was a new feeling coming from Dirk's chest, and Todd didn't like it one bit.

“Todd.” Dirk's voice was quieter, and it was unlikely the others would be able to hear it. “If you don't talk to me I will tell them all that you're ticklish.”

Todd finally raised his head.

“You're going to tell The Rowdy 3 that I'm ticklish?”

“Yes. And it will be absolutely hilarious. Unless you stop moping.” Dirk tilted his head, grinning. “It's just a party, Todd. It's not even that big of a thing.”

“It is if I say it is!”

“Well. Good thing it's not your decision.” Dirk reached across the chaotic space to touch Vogel's arm. Vogel swiveled around instantly, focused on Dirk with an alarming intensity.

“Yeah?!”

“Vogel, would you mind giving Todd his present now?”

“You mean the toys, Brit!?”

“Exactly the toys.”

Vogel ducked under Cross and crawled over to the front of the van, where he reached past Beast and Martin to grabbed the badly wrapped gift he had been holding earlier from the dashboard. After literally crawling over Amanda to get back to Todd and Dirk, he held out his hand in triumph.

How had Martin not crashed yet?

“Here you go, man! We got the coolest stuff!”

“We thought that Todd ‘I want to be a Jedi’ Brotzman could use a starter pack.” Dirk smiled over at him. Todd eyed the others in the van with trepidation, and they all stared back at him. He hesitated on the wrapping; what kind of wrapping paper was this?

The answer, he quickly found, was newspaper that was almost a decade old, judging by the date on it. He wasn't even surprised. When he tore open the paper, and the little gifts inside fell to his lap, he almost felt like jumping out of the van. There, right in his lap, were Star Wars squeaky toys.

Squeaky toys. Why’d it have to be squeaky toys?

Todd now had at least two boxes of squeaky toys stored in the spare room at the agency, and had a whole self devoted to them at his apartment. Dirk had wanted to make the spare room into a shrine for them all, but Todd and Farah had given him a hard no on that one. Mona and Dirk had never looked so disappointed, and Mona had spent the rest of the day as a rather intimidating panther to sulk. Thankfully, Dirk wasn't capable of such things, or else he would have joined her. Todd never again wanted to experience having to file paperwork while a fully grown panther sat in the doorway and stared at him. She had scared off all of the potential clients that day.

“Wow, uh.” Todd looked around, resting on Vogel's face. He was waiting with wide eyed anticipation.

He couldn't just disappoint Vogel like this.

“I, I love it.” He managed to flash a smile, and found that after a second, it wasn't forced. “I love it, Vogel. They're great.”

Vogel pumped his fists into the air, crying in victory.

“Yeah man! They're like, the best!” With a smile, Vogel let out another cry before picking up a squeaky toys and throwing it at Gripps. The toy hit him in the head, and with a wicked smile, the back of the van erupted into a full out war.

Todd ducked onto the floor, pulling Dirk down with him to avoid the chaos of flying toys above them. None of the throws seemed to be reaching either Beast or Martin, and Todd thanked whatever god was listening. Even if he got hit, Martin probably wouldn't crash, but the lack of contact sure did a lot to ease Todd's anxiety. It didn't matter how many moons passed; he couldn't get used to the way the Rowdies’ drove places. Turning his head, he saw Dirk grinning at him.

Todd grinned back.

“This is your fault.” Todd rolled his eyes, pulling Dirk closer into their corner. Laying his head on Todd's chest, Dirk glanced up.

“Funny you know, I have no idea what you could be referring to.”

“You know exactly what I mean.”

“Maybe.” Dirk latched his arms around Todd's neck, their noses touching in the crowded van. “But this position really isn't that bad.”

Todd laughed.

“Yeah. It's pretty good.”

Kissing him softly, Dirk made a small noise of surprise before smiling even wider, kissing him back. The van was momentarily filled with whooping. Finally, Dirk rested his head next to Todd's, half on his body laying on his.

“Thank you for letting me throw this, Todd.”

“It's cool, man.” Todd closed his eyes. “A party isn't that bad.” He listened to the hectic celebration in the van around them, and thought that maybe, for once, the corner wasn't so bad. This was… okay. This was more than okay, this was amazing. _Dirk_ was amazing.

At least he had a good night planned.

* * *

**What Kind Of Party Animal Are You?**

Todd breathed a sigh of relief as he was finally able to crawl out of the cramped van, but the sight he jumped out to was anything but welcoming. The cabin had been decorated with the strangest decorations he had ever seen, complete with a fake skeleton with a wolf mask. It wasn't even Halloween.

The cabin had been one of Todd's finer ideas in life. The previous campsite just wasn't the natural place to hold so many wolves and humans at once without attracting attention, and Dirk had begun to worry about people getting suspicious. After a small talk with Farah, they both agreed to look for someplace better for the pack to spend their full moons.

The answer had been the cabin.

The cabin was on private property, out in what could only be described as the ‘middle of nowhere’. There were miles and miles of trees in between here and the rest of civilization, and according to Farah, it had been on sale. They'd jumped at the opportunity, and just like that, they were suddenly the owners of a rather large piece of land. Everyone had loved this new development, and Amanda even made them have a house party.

That particular night had included a lot of alcohol, a lot of broken windows, and one too many bad decisions. After that, alcohol was banned from the property. Todd had a brief moment where he wondered if Farah had lifted the alcohol ban for night, and prayed that she hadn’t. The Rowdies could get very dangerous, or at least, very annoying, when alcohol was involved. Todd wasn't even sure they actually got drunk; they probably just liked the excuse to act like assholes.

It seemed like their type of thing to do.

Farah waved at them as they jumped out, saying quick goodbyes to whoever she was talking to on the phone. She smiled to herself as she hung up, coming over to greet them all.

“Hey Todd. You look…” She trailed off. “Kind of messy.”

“Yeah. I got manhandled by Gripps. Again.”

“Ah. I get it.” She leaned to look over Todd's shoulder, and gave a thumbs up to someone that Todd couldn't see. “Good job, Gripps!” Gripps smiled over at her and nodded, going back to pulling things off of the roof of the van. She turned back to Todd.

“So, Dirk told you then?” She asked, gesturing to Dirk as he made his way over.

“Are you insinuating that I am unable to keep such a safely guarded secret as a surprise party?” Dirk asked, looking aghast. Todd snorted.

“She’s not insinuating anything. She is telling an accurate depiction of events.” Todd said, glancing over at Dirk, who shuffled and wrapped his arms around his chest, looking huffy.

“Well, I’ll have you know I’m fantastic at keeping secrets. Such as I’ve never told anyone about the time that I found Farah absolutely terrified by a small ladybug that had flown in through the door. And– Oh drat.” Dirk’s ears went red as Farah sighed and pursed her lips.

“Yeah, steel trap right there.” Farah grumbled as she turned towards the cabin and headed inside, leaving the others outside in the cold night air darkness. There was barely any light left all, save the ones coming from the cabin. In the dark, the Rowdies looked like demons silhouetted against the foreboding tree line. Amanda jumped off of the roof of the van, having pushed everything tied on top to the ground.

“You guys gonna stand there? We have to celebrate before the moon, man!” She jogged up to them, Vogel close on her heels. Clapping their shoulders, she pushed through them both.

“The moon’s going to be cool tonight. You think it'll make you into some kind of super werewolf?” Amanda wiggled her fingers at them, barely suppressing a wicked smile. Todd sighed, shaking his head.

“It's just a moon.”

“It's a _cool_ moon! A super blue moon plus an eclipse. Do you think you'll stop shifting while the moon is all cool like that? Maybe you'll become like some breed of super wolves. Maybe-”

“Amanda!” Todd's voice was harsher than intended. He lowered his gaze.

“Sorry man. I just, find all that stuff cool. It's- nevermind.” Todd hadn't expected Amanda to give up so easily, much less sound so dejected. She shared a quick glance with Vogel, before shrugging.

“I'll see you guys inside.” Todd frowned after her as she walked into the cabin, hands in her pockets. She didn't turn back to say something to Vogel, or even to flip off Martin.

“Does she seem, weird to you?”

“She's your sister, Todd. She's always weird.”

Todd groaned and half wished there was alcohol. He wondered what that would be like. He had never gotten drunk before shifting. Would that even work? Dirk pulled him back to reality with a hand on his arm.

“Ready to go inside and not enjoy your party?” He asked grinning. Todd chuckled.

“Sure, lead the way Mastermind.” Dirk smiled and pulled him up the steps through the front door. The inside of the cabin was just as festive. Almost every shade of the rainbow decorated the walls and ceiling. Apparently when Mona said she helped with the colors, she meant all of them. It was hurting Todd's eyes.

At least Beast finally matched her surroundings.

Todd chuckled to himself as he saw the bottles of alcohol lining the kitchen counter; Farah had actually, truly lifted her ban on. He wasn't sure how long it was going to last, due to the fact that Vogel and Amanda were already eyeing the bottles. The three older Rowdies on the other hand weren't even glancing in that direction.

Todd still didn’t know a ton about how werewolf anatomy worked, but he was fairly certain he had never seen the three eldest Rowdies drunk before. He wondered if he should count himself lucky or just confused as to why it had never happened. He knew they drank, he had seen that on several occasions, but it never seemed to affect them.

Dirk had grabbed tight to his wrist and was dragging him towards a neon green bottle.

“This. You have to drink this. I used to drink it back in school before that whole thing and it will do just fine for tonight. Absinthe.” Todd frowned at the bottle.

“Isn’t absinthe poisonous?”

“Only if you’re weak.” Amanda chided from the bar as she surveyed the various options. Dirk shoved the bottle into Todd’s hand and smiled.

“You’re not weak, are you Todd?” He smirked. Todd glanced up.

“This feels like a trap. A very bad trap.” He glanced down at the bottle and almost dropped it.

“Holy shit! This is 63% alcohol. You used to drink this regularly?” Dirk smiled smugly as he grabbed a bottle of tequila and handed it to Amanda to pour shots.

“Of course I did, Todd. There’s this whole pomp and circumstance to drinking absinthe, but at parties you down it, and if you don’t die, you win!”

“How did _you_ not die?”

“Magic. And Loki, occasionally. You'd be surprised how much Loki likes to drink. He's a bit of a lightweight. And a _huge_ flirt. _Nothing_ like Thor, who wouldn't know if you were flirting with him if you gave him a sign-” Todd put his hand out, raising his eyebrow at Dirk, who had begun to look at the decorations during his ramble. If Dirk lost eye contact with someone while he was talking, he could go on for hours.

Literally.

“Dude did you, flirt, with Thor?”

“And Loki. Mostly Loki. He was much more receptive but not nearly as fun as his brother. Thor's a bit of a challenge. An acquired taste, really.” Dirk frowned down at the bottle cap. “You'd like him.”

“I am literally dating you.”

Amanda was snorting off to the side as she passed out shots, handing two to Dirk. He smiled at her and knocked both back without taking a breath. He smiled down at Todd.

“At this rate, I’m going to have you beat.” Todd rolled his eyes.

“Are you trying to make me play a drinking game? You? You're so soft that you picked up a turtle off of the sidewalk. Which wasn't even a turtle! It was Mona! She almost stabbed you!”

“Not her fault. I like turtles.”

“I hate you.”

“And I’m winning.” He snatched the absinthe back, pulling the top off and downing half the bottle without breaking eye contact. He pulled the bottle away and smiled.

“Catch up, Pup.” His lips popping over the ‘P’s. Todd shook his head, sighing at the grin forming on his face.

Dirk was allowed to play dirty now, huh?

Todd ducked under Dirk’s arm, grabbing the bottle from his hands as he stepped into the circle that the Rowdies were sitting in to avoid Dirk's grip. Dirk stuck his tongue out at him as Martin, Cross, and Gripps whooped in encouragement. Vogel and Amanda were too preoccupied with Beast and Farah, who looked like they had started to get very attached to the skeleton outside. Beast was wearing the wolf mask.

“I can do anything you can do.” Todd smirked putting the bottle to his lips and noticing the smell a fraction of a second too late. The swig he had taken burned the second it hit his tongue, making his eyes water.  

If anything could be said of Todd though, he was determined to best Dirk at his own game.

Todd gasped for air as he finally finished drinking, dropping the bottle on the ground and spilling the remaining drink onto Cross. Cross yelled at him, not in anger, and pumped his fist into the air. Todd laughed at the burning in his throat.

“Oh my god, dude, that stuff is so bad!” He laughed at Dirk.

“And you’re a lightweight, so, any moment now.” Todd giggled to himself. “There it is.”

“Yeah. And you can feel whatever I feel.” Todd pointed at Dirk, grinning crookedly. “You get to suffer with me.” Dirk's face frowned in confusion for a moment, before lighting up.

“Oh.”

“Not your best move, Brit.” Martin nodded, leaning back to avoid contact with Todd’s leg. Todd, short as he was, hadn't seemed to notice. After making eye contact with Dirk, Martin failed to contain a smile as he pushed Todd forward and out of the circle. Todd stumbled, literally, right into Dirk's arms.

“You’ve got to stop falling for me.” Dirk smiled at him.

“You have got to, stop… being.”

“Being?”

“Cute.” Dirk barely was able to contain his laughter.

“Well, that’s not possible. Ask anyone. I’ve been told I’m unashamedly adorable.” Todd raised an eyebrow, and bit his lip as he turned around.

“Cross! Is Dirk adorable?”

“I’m not doing this. Not this time. Ask Gripps.” Todd exhaled harshly, pouting as he looked at Gripps. Gripps nodded.

“Sure. Depends though.”

“On what?”

“What Brit likes to eat.” Everybody in the room groaned.

“We're not having PopTarts, Gripps.” Dirk whined. Gripps just shrugged, pulling what looked suspiciously like a box of watermelon PopTarts from somewhere to his side. Where had they come from?

“Then no. Not a bit.”

“Guess that settles it. You've got to stop now.” Dirk shook his head, pulling Todd to a chair by the counter.

“And you've got to stop drinking that bottle for the rest of your life. It was a very poor choice.”

“You told me to.”

“And you listened?”

“I listen. I do!” Todd felt panic rise up in his chest as Dirk laughed at him.

“That went south quickly.” Dirk smiled reassuringly.

Farah had started crying, holding the skeleton up and out of Beast's reach. Amanda was near hysterical on the ground, and Vogel was yelling at them all, egging them on. This was _precisely_ why alcohol wasn't allowed here.

Martin sighed, standing and walking toward Todd and Dirk.

“Alright, outside, before you break something. Ain’t having Farah yellin’ at us. Not again.”

“At least you respect her. You break just about all of the other… things.” Dirk frowned as he struggled to find the right words, the effects of Todd's drunkenness rubbing off on him. Bonds didn't always have positive effects.

“Farah’s respectable.” Martin grunted to them as he pulled them towards the door. Todd was already starting to stumble. Vogel, seeing Martin head outside, jumped with a loud yell and sprang after them.

“Yo! Wait!”

Outside, neither Todd nor Dirk had time to notice the chill in the air. In fact, they'd begun to feel the first signs of what was soon to be another round of overheating. Todd wasn't sure if it was the alcohol or the approaching moon, but the heat was more intense than it had been in months. He fanned the front of his shirt out, leaning against the outside of the cabin wall.

Vogel was jumping around in circles around Martin, as Gripps and Cross cheered him on from the side. Todd wasn't sure when, but after a second, Amanda had joined him.

Beast was still trying to get the skeleton from Farah.

Todd gave a pointed look to Farah and Beast, and Dirk leaned forward to have a better view of the spectacle.

“You know, Todd. I think that skeleton has you beat in the, looks, department.” Dirk blinked as he paused through the sentence, searching for the words.

“Are you saying a paper skeleton ranks higher than me?” Dirk shrugged, slouching against Todd. Todd didn't bother to mention that he was barely able to hold even his own weight up. They slid down the side of the cabin and came to rest on the deck.

“Yes. He's very… papery.”

“You're paler.”

“That's true. I am.”

Todd giggled again, pulling Dirk in for a hug. Somehow, Dirk ended up on his lap, and Todd found himself looking down at his smiling face, framed in the dim light.

He was perfect.

“Dirk, you know man, you're like… something. Good. Something so good.” Dirk reached up for his face, but his arm fell back down again as he gave up halfway.

“And you, Todd.” Dirk laughed. “Did you know I once told Francis that you, were perfect?”

“The, small kid, or some other time, cause that seems, weird.” Todd smiled lightly.

Amanda snorted down at them.

“Is this what it’s like every time you guys drink?” She asked, laughing lightly. Todd sighed and swung his head to look up at her.

“It is, and your point?” She shrugged.

“Nothing, it’s just grossly cute.” Dirk pointed in her direction from Todd's lap, making a shushing sound.

“Shhh.” He smiled at her. “We've got to be silent, Amanda.”

“Why?” she whispered back.

“To, appreciate, how Todd looks.” Dirk's words had started to sound weird in his mouth, and Todd knew that the effects of what he himself had drank before Todd was starting to get to him.

“Well thankfully, I don’t care how my brother looks, but you look a little out of it.” She said, dropping down next to them, and looking out at the others. Dirk scoffed.

“I, am not out, of it. I'm just… flowery?”

“Yeah, that's not the term.”

“Translucent?”

“Nope.”

“Something, Amanda.” he grumbled, curling tighter into Todd’s chest. She laughed.

“Drunk. The word is drunk.” He shook his head as he buried his face into Todd's stomach.

“No. The word is hot. It's very hot out here.”

In actuality, checking the temperature before they'd left on their phone, the temperature was probably closer to freezing, maybe even colder. Amanda herself was bundled up in at least three layers, but Todd, Dirk, and Vogel were already down to a single, thin layer of clothing. The moon would rise soon. Todd saw Amanda shiver slightly and sighed, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and pulling her close.

“Hey–”

“Space heater, remember? Shut up and come here.” She sighed, but let Todd pull her in anyway. Dirk, who was now nearly being sat on by her, didn't like this new development.

“You guys are warm, huh?” Todd nodded, feeling the way Amanda was shivering.

“What's it like, like? To get all hot before the full moon?”

“Terrible.” Dirk groaned as he shuffled trying to find somewhere cool to lay. Todd laughed.

“It’s not great. But it doesn’t last too long.” He said, leaning back into the coolness of the cabin.

Amanda shifted her head to get another look at the other Rowdies. Vogel had taken off his jacket, but it was impossible to see where it had been thrown in the darkness. He looked flushed, but nevertheless happy with himself. Todd heard Amanda give a sigh.

“Can't be that bad.”

Todd didn't respond as another heat wave rocked through his body, and he clenched his teeth, waiting for it to pass. Amanda propped up, staring at the way the heat had made both Dirk and Todd shake. She clicked her tongue.

“Right. I'm gonna go drag Farah and Beast inside so you can all, do your wolf thing.” Amanda grabbed the cabin wall as she got onto her feet, but as she took a step towards the other two, she turned back to Todd. “Make sure to come and get me when you're all shifted. I don't want to miss any of it.”

Todd leaned his head back, his whole body still shaking horribly as Amanda pulled Farah, Beast, and the skeleton into the cabin. He could feel Dirk trembling, and he lowered his hands to pull him up as softly as he could.

Through the immense amounts of heat coming off of him, Dirk managed a grin.

“I quite enjoy our full moons, Todd.” Todd nodded.

“So do I.”

* * *

Truth? Don't Be A Loser

Todd woke up to someone tapping at him. He groaned, rolling over to get closer to Dirk. Whoever it was could wait. Todd's hand reached out to find Dirk, but found nothing.

Finally, he opened his eyes.

Dirk was sitting up, a blanket wrapped around him, and was in the process of trying to wake Todd. When he saw his eyes open, he smiled.

“Good morning, Todd.” Todd grumbled under his breath as he pushed himself up to get a better look at Dirk. Why was it so cold?

“Dirk, what the hell man?”

“It's _late_ , Todd.” Dirk mocked a frown at him. “And rather cold, as you can tell. The outside weather isn't much fun when you're a human.”

Todd glanced around. They were the only ones outside, and now that he was focusing, he could hear clear music and chatter coming from the cabin. The van was parked a few feet away, the familiar bag of clothes overflowing onto the ground. A chill ran down Todd's spine as the wind picked up.

“Jesus Christ, Dirk.” Todd grabbed tighter to the blanket covering him. “How long have we been out here?”

“Long enough. Thankfully the blankets are warmer this time.” The blanket covering Dirk looked more like a comforter than the usual sheets they woke up to, and Todd couldn't help but notice that Dirk's looked just a little bit newer than his own.

He shook his head.

“Whatever, let's just. Let's get inside before we freeze.” Todd went to stand, but Dirk stuck his hand out to stop him.

“I think you've forgotten that we're lacking clothes? And besides, I told Farah to save a spot for us last night. Everything will be fine.”

Todd scrambled to keep a hold of the blanket as Dirk pulled him up; there were too many reasons that he didn't want to be exposed right now. The main one, though, was the cold. Todd had forgotten to check the temperature predicted for that morning, but with the way the grass looked pale, it was probably below freezing.

Perfect.

The bag was a mixture of clothes belonging to everyone, even Todd and Dirk. The Rowdies didn't like others to buy clothes for the bag, as it belonged to Gripps, so they'd gone shopping themselves. Or at least, that's what Amanda had called it. They hadn't known what to get, so they'd grabbed the brightest clothes they could find. There was a lot of blue.

Dirk pulled his jacket from the corner of the van, holding it up with a smile.

“Guess the Rowdies decided to stop shredding your jacket.” Dirk gleamed at Todd as he nodded, digging in the bag for something suitable to wear. He pulled out a darker shirt with a skeleton on it, throwing it onto Todd. The shirt landed on his head.

“You can wear that one.” Todd heard Dirk suppress a laugh.

“I hate you sometimes.”

“I very much doubt that. You're really- oh!”

Todd pulled the shirt off of his head to find that Dirk had found a fluorescent yellow shirt with a rather obnoxious graphic design on the front. Todd rolled his eyes.

“That shirt sucks, man.” Dirk shrugged, throwing it over his shoulder.

“The sooner you can admit that your clothes are hideous, the happier you'll be.” Dirk glanced back at him. “Besides, this is my lucky jacket. Nothing can look bad with it.”

“You bought that at a Walmart.” Dirk stuck out his hand to quiet Todd.

“Where it comes from doesn't matter. We can discuss this after we find trousers.”

To Dirk's dismay, the only pants he could really find were black and gray. Todd wrapped his arm around him, the other one occupied with holding up the blanket. Dirk paused, staying in Todd's embrace for a moment.

“Did it have to be gray?” Todd rubbed his shoulder, meeting eyes with Dirk.

“It's only until we get back. Then you can change into the most obnoxious thing you own.”

Dirk smiled at him.

“I suppose we should hurry. I'm sure we have a real feast waiting for us inside.” Todd groaned, rolling his head back as he thought ahead.

“I hope Farah stocked the kitchen. No way am I having another watermelon poptart in my life.”

In the end, Todd ending up giving Dirk a pair of black jeans instead of gray. They had white designs going up the left pant leg, and that seemed to be enough to keep Dirk satisfied. After they were able to get their clothes on without freezing to death, they linked their hands together as they made their way over to the cabin.

Walking into the cabin was like walking into a room where a bomb was going off indefinitely. The noise was muffled from the outside, thanks to some handy work by Farah, but as soon as they opened the door they were bombarded with a mixture of laughter, music, and four different conversations happening at once. Vogel poked his head up from his seat next to Amanda as they entered, and waved at them.

“Hey! Pup's awake!” Gripps yelled from the corner at them, raising his cup in greetings. Cross flashed them a grin as his brother acknowledged them.

“You know, I still have a name.”

“Pup's the best name!” From elsewhere in the room, the other Rowdies roared in agreement, stopping the conversations for two seconds before they continued. Todd suppressed a sigh.

“I think it's a great name.” Dirk leaned against him as they looked around for a place to sit, lowering himself so that his head was at the same height as Todd's as he hugged him from behind. Todd raised his eyebrows.

“I can't believe you're in league with this.”

“We all are, Todd. It's a group effort.” Todd groaned, dragging Dirk forward towards the kitchen where Farah was frying bacon. She glanced up and gave a soft smile.

“Thought you guys had frozen to death. There’s not a ton left but there is food other than pop tarts.” She glanced over her shoulder towards Gripps who was making his way through another pack. Todd grabbed the loaf of bread near the toaster and popped a couple slices in while Dirk disentangled himself and headed towards the fridge.

“I thought you said there was food.” Dirk grimaced as he searched the nearly empty fridge for something to eat. Everything in it was either half eaten or would take at least five minutes to heat up.

“There should be some stuff behind the syrup.”

Dirk pushed the syrup aside; did Gripps really need to keep so many bottles in here? He felt around, pulling out a carton of eggs that he frowned down at.

“Todd-“

“Yes I’ll make them so you don’t have to.” Todd answered without looking up from spreading butter on his toast. Todd heard a delighted squeal as the fridge closed and Dirk reappeared at his side.

“There aren't many left, so if we were to share we would get rather meager portions. Although I suppose we could also share your bread, but I have to warn you that that butter is just the worst kind.” Todd rolled his eyes, taking the carton from Dirk's hands.

“Well thankfully there’s some jam for the picky eater.” Todd smiled taking a bite of the toast and stealing the pan from Farah who had finished her bacon. In the time it took Todd to make the eggs Dirk had made it halfway through the loaf of bread and had started eating the jam with a spoon.

“So, am I eating these or what?” Todd asked smiling over Dirk. He looked up and smiled.

“Oh fantastic! Thank you Todd! Very good assisting.” Dirk snatched the plate and headed into the main are with the others while Todd made some more toast before joining them. Amanda was grumbling about the weather by the time he finally sat down.

“It’s just too cold! It should be a crime. I’m not getting into that van until it’s a little warmer.” She curled tighter into the blanket she was wearing and glared over at Todd as he sat down in the chair Dirk was leaning against.

“How are you wearing a t-shirt right now?” She asked, her voice muffled through the blanket.

“It’s the perks of being a werewolf. I’m always warm around the moon. Which was just super fun this summer I might add.” Todd smiled around his toast as Amanda rolled her eyes.

“Whatever. I would _not_ be complaining if I was able to wear a t-shirt in this weather. Must be nice.” Todd raised an eyebrow. This wasn’t the first Amanda had something like that, in fact she said stuff like that constantly. That it was cool, that Todd was lucky, that the pack seemed like a fun club to be apart of. All of that had been said with a smile, so it was odd to hear the words accompanied by a frown.

Todd had seen that look before. When her crush in middle school started dating someone else, when Todd used to steal the last doughnut in the box, most recently he had seen the look when he had won tickets to a concert and had taken Dirk and not her. Amanda wore jealousy like Dirk wore jackets; loud and in your face. Was Amanda jealous?

Todd didn’t get a chance to continue his train of thought because Dirk had started speaking.

“Well, if we’re going to wait for it to get a little warmer why don’t we play a game? We could play 20 questions or charades or, oh! What’s that one with the paper and the gallows?” He was looking down at Todd expectantly.

“Hangman?”

“Hangman! Yes! We could play any number of games.” Amanda perked up, shuffling her blanket down slightly.

“How about Truth or Dare?” She asked, smiling mischievously. Farah snorted from her spot on the couch.

“Really? Are we 12?” She asked. Amanda’s smile widened.

“What’s wrong Farah? Too chicken to play a little game?” Amanda chided earning her a frown and crossed arms from Farah.

“No– no, I’m not. We can, it’s just that it seems a little juvenile. But sure, let’s play. Would you like to go first?” Amanda raised her eyebrows, grinning.

“Me? No way. I want to be the one getting _asked._ ” Amanda turned her head ever so slightly to Dirk, who continued to stare ahead. “Dirk?”

“Yes? Oh! Right? Um, how does one play again? Do I just, ask you whether you want a truth or a dare?” Dirk asked, frowning slightly. There was laughter from around the room, and Amanda nodded her head.

“Yeah man. See? You got it already.” She clapped her hands together. “So. You gonna ask me or what?”

Todd groaned.

“Alright,” Dirk smiled, “Amanda, truth or dare?”

Amanda pretended to contemplate for a moment, putting her hands to her temples. After a moment, she shrugged.

“Truth. I'm too lazy to get up.” Vogel was audibly disheartened. Amanda usually got the best dares out of the whole group. Once, Dirk had walked in during the middle of a game, and Amanda was climbing the agency building with the help of Mona. Dirk frowned. He was extraordinarily bad at this game.

“Hm. Right. Well. Oh, I know! Tell us what the most embarrassing thing is that has ever happened to you _and_ Todd.” Dirk smiled as Todd gave a groan. Todd had a pretty good idea of what Amanda thought was the most embarrassing story from their combined lives and he didn’t come out of the story looking great. Amanda attempted to cover up her laugh, but upon making eye contact with Todd, nearly doubled over.

“Dude! Okay, so Todd was like… I don't even know. Like nineteen? Twenty? Super young. And mom put him in charge of getting snacks for our neighbor's party. They had this seven year old kid. So _this_ dumbass,” She cracked a grin at Todd, “Decides to go buy brownies off of his friend. Except, they weren't actually brownies. Traditionally.”

“Dude come on. You were like eight. Let it go.” Todd groaned into his hands as Amanda fell into another bout of laughter.

“You bought pot brownies for a bunch of kids! I am never letting you live this down!”

“I didn't let them eat it!”

“No. You just let a bunch of kids watch you throw out a tray while you threw granola bars at them instead. Mom and Dad knew _exactly_ what-”

Todd threw his hands up; the entire cabin had started to laugh at him. He closed his eyes for a second, taking a breath.

“Okay! Let’s just, do someone else now! Story over.” Amanda continued to laugh for a moment but took a steadying breath.

“Alright, fine. Um, Vogel. Truth or dare?” She asked, smiling over at him. Vogel's head shot up, a maniac expression spreading over his face. A low rumble from the other Rowdies rose up as he started to jump in his seat.

“Dare, Boss! Let me do a dare!” Vogel was barely able to stay sat down as a loud energy started to bounce around the room, felt even by those who weren't borderline empaths.

Dirk looked around nervously.

“Okay…” Amanda glanced around the room, finally meeting eyes with Martin. “I dare you to wear Martin's glasses until we leave.”

Martin looked like an unhappy child as Vogel snatched his glasses, whispering what sounded like an apology to him as he did it. He popped the glasses on and took an unsteady step forward, nearly missing his chair as he went to sit back down.

“Easy! My turn?” Amanda nodded.

“Your turn.”

“Uh…” Vogel frowned. “Hey! Dirk! Wanna do one!?”

Dirk smiled and nodded.

“Absolutely. It seems like fun. Truth please.”

Todd snorted, garnering a glare.

“What?” Dirk asked as Todd shook his head.

“Nothing, it’s just, truth, that’s very predictable.” Todd smiled, as some of the others snickered as well. Dirk glared around the room.

“I could do a dare if I wanted. I just don’t very much feel like it.” Todd nodded again.

“Sure, I am, very sure you could. If you wanted to.” Todd smiled as Dirk’s face flushed, a deep sigh escaping him. The group looked around at each other.

“I’ll show all of you. Vogel? I’ve changed my mind. Dare, please.”

“Aw yeah!” Vogel pounded his fists on his knees. He swiveled his head around to look for a good dare for a good minute, before finally resting his eyes on something behind Dirk. His face lit up, and Dirk saw the other Rowdies cheer in encouragement. All in all, that wasn't the best sign. Vogel pointed to whatever was behind him.

“I dare you to go break that, man!”

Vogel was pointing to the television behind them all, which until now had remained shut off. It was a rather expensive product, and Dirk could feel Farah's glare burning through him. If it got broken, surely they wouldn't get another one. Besides, Dirk was never one for real, tangible violence. Vogel grabbed the baseball bat next to him and tossed it over, missing Dirk and hitting Todd.

“Hey!”

“You’ll need that! Unless you’re chicken!” Dirk opened his mouth to speak, not entirely sure where he was going with the sentence.

“I don't know, Vogel. It cost a _lot_ of money, and-”

“Break it, man!” Dirk grabbed the bat, spinning and throwing it towards the screen. Farah wasn’t even able to shout before glass was raining down to the ground.

“Holy shit!”

“Dirk! What the hell?!”

“Nice one!” Vogel cheered, as the other Rowdies joined in. Dirk stood still, watching as the screen sparked and bits of glass fell to the ground. He glanced down at his hand for a moment before Vogel clapped him on the back.

“Guess you can do dares! That was crazy, man!”

“Didn't know Brit had it in him!”

“Go Brit!”

“Everyone!”

Farah was standing up with her hands raised, looking both livid and exhausted. Everyone quieted down at once; Farah, along with Martin and Amanda, was one of the very few people who could actually get everyone to listen to her on the first try. The group stared at her from where they were all sitting, and with a glare at Dirk, Farah took a deep breath.

“Right. Everyone is leaving. Now.”

“Farah-”

“No, Todd. We're leaving. I don't care how cold it is. That's what we have our cars for.” Farah glanced at Amanda. “And vans.”

Nobody was happy with this development, but nobody tried to get into an actual argument with Farah. The Rowdy Three grumbled a bit, but upon looking to Amanda, promptly stoop to gathering their things that had been scattered about the room. Vogel picked up a spare squeaky toy before jumping onto Gripps’ back, who after swiping a box of PopTarts, grinned up at him. Amanda attempted to try and talk with Farah, and after a few minutes, Todd watched her nod and pull the Rowdies outside, the blanket still around her shoulders.

With the morning having pressed on, Todd was finally starting to really feel the chill in the air as he stepped outside. Dirk shivered, and he knew that he was feeling it as well. Pulling him in closer to share their body heat, Dirk smiled down at him as they went to say goodbye to the Rowdies. Farah was already by their car, having said goodbye in the cabin, and was on her phone trying to call someone.

“Man! Hey man!” Vogel jumped off of Gripps’ back, throwing the toy for him to catch and bounding over to meet Todd and Dirk. Dirk let go of Todd.

“Hello Vogel. Sorry I got you kicked out.”

“That's cool man! It's like, super not bad!” Vogel bounced back and forth on his feet. “We like, barely got talk! No words!”

“Well I don't think it counts as talking, but you and I did do a number on Todd last night. I had a wonderful time.” Vogel's face relaxed into a grin, a laugh rising from his chest.

“Yeah! Yeah we like, totally destroyed Pup!”

“I'm right here.”

“Oh shush, Todd. We're talking.”

Todd raised his eyebrows, shaking his head. Dirk and Vogel had been close to each other ever since the whole thing with Blackwing, and Vogel went to Todd for something he needed just as much as he went to any of the other Rowdies, which, for someone who was as far from a Rowdy as you could get, was quite the achievement. Todd had never actually asked the details of what happened between him and Dirk; it didn't seem like it was any of his business, not unless one of them decided to fill him in. Boundaries, at least, were one thing that Todd and Dirk were good at.

Whatever had happened in Blackwing, Vogel had been close to Dirk ever since.

“I gotta leave, Brit. The guys are waiting!” Vogel glanced back at the van, where Amanda had stolen Gripps’ coat from somewhere inside and had wrapped it around herself. Beast was jumping up and down, helping Cross and Martin pack everything up and secure it on the roof. Vogel turned back to Dirk. “You gonna miss me, man?!”

“Of course not. I can't believe you would ever accuse me of such things.”

Vogel laughed.

“Tell the truth, Brit!”

Dirk's face fell slightly.

“Of course I'll miss you, Vogel. I always miss you when you leave. You're like a weird, violent little brother to me.” Dirk glanced behind him. “The others are less so. But they're my pack, so I tolerate them. Gripps has an _especially_ horrible taste in food, you know.” Vogel's eyes widened as he nodded. He went to respond, but Martin's voice sounded over, calling him to the van. With a nod, Vogel waved at them.

“Miss you too, man! See you Brit! See you Pup!”

Vogel ducked under Cross’ arm as he climbed into the van, and soon enough, they all had clambered inside after him. Once the doors were closed, it wasn't long before they were watching the van drive off and disappear in between the trees. Todd sighed, and after making eye contact with Farah, started to pull Dirk towards the car.

“Come on, Dirk.”

“I'd rather not, actually. Farah's going to be rather pissed at me.”

“Probably.” Todd laughed. “You _did_ break a tv.”

“Only because I was told to. I'm a terrible listener, actually. I'm surprised I followed though. I _despise_ violence. It reminds me of Blackwing.” Todd glanced at Dirk out of the corner of his eye, stuffing him into the backseat of the car. Farah was driving, of course; Dirk was rarely allowed to drive if Farah had anything to say about it. Todd didn't like to let him drive either, but that was mostly because he was scared Dirk would hurt himself. His road skills left something to be desired. Todd slammed the door shut and climbed into the passenger seat.

“Yeah, that was kind of weird. It's fine though.”

Glaring at Todd out of the corner of her eye, Farah started the car and drive them just a little bit too fast off of the property.

Yeah, they were definitely in trouble.

* * *

**Dirk Gently Has A PSA, He Wants You To Shut Up**

“I just don’t understand why you needed to break the TV. Like, that was expensive, Dirk. Couldn’t break a vase or a plate, or a lamp. I would have preferred replacing the lamps for the seventh time. But the TV?” Farah was glaring through the windshield as they drove back to the city.

“I don’t know why I did it. I just did. Besides, money isn’t exactly a major issue for us. You can just buy a new one.” He responded from the backseat. Todd glanced back and noticed the odd frown on his face.

“That’s not the point, Dirk, and you know it. It was a nice TV and we had only used it like once.” Farah grumbled as they passed the city limits and took the exit towards the office.

“I’m sorry I broke the TV and that you’re annoyed you have to buy a new one.” Todd threw a glance at Farah who took a slow breath. Dirk was always fairly annoying, but he usually knew better than to push Farah’s buttons.

“It’s, it’s fine. I guess. Whatever. We have some paperwork that needs to get done at the office and then we can all head home and get some rest.” She said.

“I hate paperwork. It’s so boring. I’m just going to have Todd do it all.” Dirk said, looking out the window as they wound through the streets.

“No way, you are not getting me to do your paperwork and mine. You can do it yourself.” Todd said, glancing back again, Dirk was still frowning out the window and Todd felt an odd pressure in his chest.

“I can do it myself. But I find it so utterly boring I would much rather be doing anything else. Besides, you’ll eventually just give in and do it for me.” Farah glanced over at Todd as she parked in the agency’s lot. Todd had a fairly good feeling she was thinking the same thing that he was. There was definitely something up with Dirk. Before either of them could ask what was wrong Dirk had slipped out of the car and headed for the front door of the agency.

“He’s being weird right?” Farah asked. Todd nodded as they watched Dirk enter the agency.

“I don't know. Dirk isn't one to, break things. He's Dirk. He thinks bees are violent.” Todd locked the car, shoving the keys into his pocket as Farah frowned.

“I don't know. Maybe he's tired?”

“He broke a TV.”

“Good point.”

They followed after Dirk and were slightly surprised to find that he wasn’t in the main area.

“Dirk?” Todd called.

“In the kitchen eating those cookies you told me not to.” Came Dirk’s reply. Todd sighed and looked over at Farah.

“I guess I’m sorry for blaming you for eating my oreos.” Farah was still frowning towards the kitchen door.

“Maybe we should ask Mona if she’s ever seen him like this.”

“Seen who like what?” Todd and Farah jumped as Mona appeared on Todd’s desk. He had been fairly certain that she was the plant in the corner but it looked like she had been a pen or some other desk tool. When had they gotten a plant?

“Mona, I swear- please stop doing that.” Todd hissed as he glared over at her.

“You said my name, I’m here. How can I help?” She asked, swinging her legs back and forth off the side of the desk. Todd glanced back towards the kitchen before walking closer to Mona so that he could hopefully avoid Dirk hearing him.

“Has Dirk ever gotten, like, weirdly passive aggressive before, like where he just says stuff, to like, say stuff?” Todd asked. Farah frowned over at him before looking back at Mona. She tilted her head.

“I don’t understand.”

“Like,” Farah tried, “Has he ever just started telling you things you didn’t need to know? Or been kinda rude?” Mona shook her head, looking between the two of them.

“No, he’s just Dirk.” She said, looking a little confused. Todd sighed and shuffled back and forth as he heard Dirk come back into the room.

“Hello, Mona. Are you all talking about me?” Dirk asked, dropping the oreo box on his desk and crossing his arms over his chest. Todd scoffed and looked over at Farah and Mona.

“No, of course not. Why would you think that?”

“Because I’m amazingly paranoid and I have a crippling fear that one day you’re all going to just leave me because you secretly don’t like me.” For a moment no one said anything, just existing in the stunned silence. Even Dirk was starting to look uncomfortable and Todd could feel the beginnings of panic.

“I see what you mean. No this is weird.” Mona said, breaking the silence. Todd rolled his eyes and glanced back her.

“Yeah, I got that. Thanks, Mona.” Todd turned back to Dirk and gave a soft smile.

“We’re not gonna leave you Dirk. You’re our friend. You just seem a little, um-”

“Off?”

“High strung.”

“I was gonna say agitated, but again, thanks guys.” Todd glared at Farah and Mona who were watching Dirk. “We just want to make sure you’re okay. We don’t have to be here for long. Just some paperwork and then we can head home. Let’s get on it, yeah?” Dirk groaned flopping down onto his chair.

“I absolutely despise paperwork. I would much rather be at home.” Dirk grumbled as he grabbed an insurance form that had been sitting on his desk for nearly a week. Todd sighed.

“Feeling’s mutual. Mona can I have my desk back?” Before he could blink she had shifted into a small clock, sitting on the edge of his desk. He threw one last look at Farah before he walked around and took his seat.

Something was definitely wrong. Todd could feel Dirk’s panic and confusion but Todd didn’t know how to ask without making him upset. Normally they would just talk about it but the stress Dirk was feeling seemed to be coming specifically from talking. That was easy enough to avoid for Todd.

They worked in relative silence, Dirk mumbling incoherently to himself as he filled out the various forms that littered his desk. Todd did the same, making his way through several damage reports relating to a case they had the previous month that may or may not have involved a giraffe and a totaled rental car. It had only been an hour when Dirk collected his forms and walked them over to Farah.

“There, all done. I’m going to lay down on the couch and pretend to be asleep.” Dirk had only made it a few steps when Farah stopped him.

“Hey, whoa, no, Dirk. These, these forms aren’t usable. You can’t- we can’t just say that an Atlantean put a trident through the windshield of the car.” Dirk groaned and turned back.

“That’s what happened. So that’s what I wrote down.” He answered, sounding far more annoyed than necessary. Todd glanced up and frowned over at him.

“Dude, what is up with you today? You know we lie on the insurance forms, that’s like, how we are able to continue working. We would all get thrown in the psych ward if we told the insurance company about the aliens, and the merpeople, and that, oh what was that girl? The one with the violin?”

“Demi-god.” Farah supplied, still glaring down at the forms as she shuffled through them.

“Exactly. Is this just because you’re tired?”

“I am tired. But I highly doubt that affected my writing abilities. I did as Farah asked even though I told you that–”

The door to the office dinged open as a man walked in. He was well dressed, in a dark blue, almost purple fitted suit, and despite the cold weather, he wasn’t wearing any sort of jacket. Dirk was rather tall, or at least he was rather tall to Todd, but the newcomer had to be over six feet tall, far taller than Dirk or Martin and he held himself like he knew that his height was intimidating. He flashed a smile at the group and stepped up to the receptionist desk.  

“Hello, sorry to interrupt. I’m in need of a detective. Is one of you Dirk Gently?” He had the slightest of accents, and Todd would have guessed Scandinavian. Todd jumped up before Dirk had a chance to speak.

“Hi! Yes, you’ve come to the right place. I’m Todd, that’s Farah, and this is Dirk. How can we help?” The man tipped his head slightly, his eyes narrowing, but a smile lit up his face.

“Fantastic. Well, it’s a bit of a family matter. I’ve been having some trouble locating my siblings and was hoping that–”

“I don't want you here.”

Todd turned to Dirk, narrowing his eyes as Dirk crossed his arms on his chest. Dirk was looking the man right in the eyes, and wasn't dropping his gaze. The man spoke with hesitation.

“I'm sorry?”

“I said I don't want you here. I am not interested in solving a case right now, and quite honestly you look like an arsehole. Not to mention the fact that I find you absolutely infuriating. I mean the way you speak alone-”

“Dirk!” Todd raised his voice, gawking at him. Dirk raised his eyebrows at Todd, frowning.

“Don't tell me you disagree. I can feel your emotions, Todd. You are not in the mood for a case.”

Todd exhaled sharply; how could Dirk just say things like that in front of a potential client? There was no better way to scare someone off than Dirk's rambling, but even then he usually had some control over what he said. At the moment, Dirk looked extraordinarily exhausted, and whatever was up with him, his tiredness surely wasn't helping.

Dirk sighed.

“Look Mr… Whatever. I don't particularly care what sort of problem you're having at the moment. I've just gotten back from a very tiring night as a werewolf, and I would appreciate some sort of restful activity. Running around solving some weird case, probably involving aliens, is not what I had planned, and it is not what I intend to do. So you might as well leave, because whatever you're offering, I'm not accepting. Yes?”

“I'm sorry, there seems to be a misunderstanding. I'm interrupting something, I assume? You and your…” The man trailed off, eyeing Todd. “Friend.”

“ _Boyfriend._ And yes, as a matter of fact you are. We were in the middle of discussing something very–”

“Dirk!” Todd cut him off, glaring. “I’m so sorry. He’s not...well?”

“I am in perfect health, Todd. If anyone of us was going to unwell it’d be Farah, she–” Dirk glanced over at Farah and stopped himself. She looked positively murderous. “Right. Anyway. I’m not taking cases at the moment. No matter what the universe says.”

The man nodded, still looking at Todd.

“I understand, Gently, I presume. I hope to see you all again in the future. Perhaps we can be acquaintances.” He raised his hands in defeat, taking a step towards the door. “I hope you have a pleasant day.”

He smiled before he disappeared out of the room. Todd groaned.

“Dirk, what the hell is wrong with you? That was a case!” Todd shouted, turning to glare at Dirk who was shaking his head.

“We weren’t supposed to take the case. And I didn’t like him.” Dirk said, seeming to get a little more flustered.

“Didn’t like him? He was here for less than two minutes. He could have been a millionaire willing to pay us for our services.” Todd pushed. Farah was up as well, moving to stand near Todd.

“He wasn’t a millionaire, Todd.” Dirk said crossing his arms.

“And how would you even know that?” Todd asked.

“Because I’m psychic.” Dirk’s eyes went wide. Todd glanced over at Farah and then back at Dirk who’s breathing had increased.

“I mean, I’m psychic.” Dirk slapped a hand over his mouth. Todd could feel the panic rising in his chest.

“I thought you said you weren’t.” Farah said cautiously.

“I lied. I am psychic. I just told Blackwing I wasn’t hoping they would stop running tests on me.” Dirk gasped as he started to hyperventilate. Todd glanced between him and Farah, an idea forming in his head.

“Dirk, hey, um, what color is Farah’s shirt?” Dirk glanced up and raised an eyebrow, still obviously panicking.

“Red.”

“Fantastic. Say her shirt is black.” Todd said, watching as Dirk frowned at him.

“Okay. Farah’s shirt is red. Wait, Farah’s shirt is red. Red. Red? Why can’t I say Farah’s shirt is red?”

“Holy shit.”

“Dirk.” Farah put her hands up to quiet the two men. “This is, strange. I'll admit. But I'm sure it's probably just, you being tired after the moon or, something.”

“We should test it.”

Dirk grimaced.

“I think that's an awful idea, Todd. Knowing you you'll ask something that absolutely no one wants to know and then I'll pretend not to be mad at you for at least a week.”

Dirk frowned at them, shifting his eyes away from the two and resting on Mona The Clock. Mona didn't do anything, because it's commonly known that clocks are inanimate objects. She was there though, and that provided just a small bit of comfort. It was a miracle she had become human at all; lately she had been expressing how content she was as a clock in the form of the only accurate time telling in the entire agency. All of the other clocks in the vicinity stopped working as soon as they came within range. It was a leftover side effect from an old case.

The agency was unusually quiet. The silence gave Todd one of his usual bad ideas on how to test his forming theory.

“Dirk, how do you actually feel about the fact that Vogel like, bit you?” Dirk's eyes shot up, his eyes alight with the most fierce look Todd had ever seen.

He was definitely in trouble.

“I really don't appreciate you asking that. I find it intrusive and I'm going to steal your coffee later in retribution.” Farah snorted. “I'm actually very angry about it sometimes. Not that I blame him. Blackwing is definitely at fault here but I think this is what they wanted to happen. Not that I'd ever ask. And Vogel is… well he's not a child, he's older than Amanda. But he's still young and if he knew that sometimes I woke up absolutely furious at him I don't believe he would ever speak to me again.

“I like him. I just think he's taken advantage of. And there are definitely times when I'm so angry at him for this that I have Mona shift into him so I can pretend to tell him. Speaking of I _also_ do that to practice arguments with you, but that's a whole different-” Dirk paused, slapping his hand over his mouth.

“You have Mona do what?” Todd asked, eyes going wide. Farah snorted next to him.

“Wait, that time I came in and you were yelling at Todd about tea or whatever, was that Mona?” She asked.

“Of course it was. I was trying to perfect my argument for a fully stocked tea cupboard.” Dirk mumbled through his fingers. “I am rather scared about what’s going on and would love it if you two stopped asking questions.”

Farah moved forward, smiling at Dirk as she tried to find something for her hands to do. Dirk groaned from behind his hands.

“Don't worry. I'm sure we can, figure this out. Maybe if we call Amanda?”

“Oh yeah. Let's just call the whole van back to this place. We were replacing walls for weeks the last time we did that.” Todd pulled out a chair, falling into it.

Farah shrugged.

“Maybe we could go to your place instead.”

Dirk pushed himself out of his seat, shaking his head as he tried to maneuver himself around the desk.

“We are _not_ inviting them to Todd's place. They hate it too much not to mess it up, and I can't have Todd stay in my empty apartment right now. Most of my stuff is with Todd and I use my apartment to stash tea.” Dirk glared at Farah, his hand still over his mouth. This didn't shut him up, but it did make his voice hard to understand.

Todd couldn't tell if Dirk looked angry or upset. From what he could feel coming off of Dirk, it might have been both. Dirk's emotions had become difficult to decipher as of late.

“Maybe they know something. Amanda has the wand, right?”

“Are you suggesting she put a spell on me? If she was going to curse anyone it would be Todd. She's been planning it for months.” Dirk went red, and made brief eye contact with Todd before turning away.

“Great. So now my sister wants to hex me.” Farah glanced over.

“I’m surprised she hasn’t yet. Regardless. This stuff started today right? Well, all we’ve done is seen the Rowdies and then come back here. So unless that possible client you scared away somehow did something, I say we start with Amanda. I’ll give them a call, you two, play nice.” Farah pulled out her phone and headed out the front door. Todd sighed and glanced over at Dirk.

“I’m sorry, about the Vogel thing, that was, a shitty move.” Todd said, watching as Dirk started pacing.

“It was indeed.” Dirk mumbled. Todd frowned over at the clock sitting on his desk.

“Do you really practice arguments with Mona?” Todd could feel the eyeroll without having to look.

“Yes. Her impression of you is spot on. Farah has walked in on it more than once and can’t spot the difference.” Todd wanted to be mad but it was just too funny of a mental image.

“And here I thought Farah was the smartest of the bunch. You know you don’t have to practice arguments right? You can just talk to me.”

“I practice so what happened during the Patrick Spring case doesn’t happen again.” Dirk stopped walking as he sighed. Todd could feel sadness cover the panic as Dirk thought about the case.

“You mean the liar thing?” Todd said. “Dirk, it’s okay, you were angry, I was angry. People say dumb crap when they’re upset. It happens.”

“Yes.” Dirk snapped at Todd, his face clouded. “Because calling me a monster is exactly what would help in that situation!”

Dirk paused, taking a moment to breathe before putting his face in his hands. Todd heard him sigh as he fell backwards into a chair. The emotions simmering in Dirk's chest was a melting pot of every negative one that Todd had ever felt him have, besides terror, and it was starting to rub off on him too. Todd looked away; he couldn't let this spiral.

Dirk peeked up from between his fingers at Todd, speaking softly to pull his attention back to him.

“Please don't be mad at me. I, don't mean, those thing when I say them. Granted it did only escalate the situation, and I'm doubting how effectively I am able to apologize at the moment. But, it's really alright. I don't blame you for, much of anything that happened during the case. I'm the one who dragged you into it. You can see why people don't like staying.” Dirk stopped in the middle of his thought, sitting up straight as his eyes widened.

“Todd. Is this the new chair or the old one?”

“The old one. Why?”

“Oh my god.”

Dirk sprung out of the chair like it was on fire, tripping over his feet and crashing down to the floor. Todd swore under his breath and he ran to pull Dirk up, who was now visibly dizzy as he stood.

“Dirk, what the hell?” Todd used both of his hands to keep Dirk steady, and Dirk held back onto him in return. After ensuring that he wasn't going to fall over, Todd let go. Dirk blinked before launching into an animated accusation against the chair.

“I am _not_ sitting in that chair until Farah cleans it!” Dirk pointed at the old, battered office chair. They had gotten it for rather cheap at a thrift store, and up until recently, Dirk had liked it above all the others. “She has to admit to ruining my favorite chair before she does anything else with it!”

“How, did she ruin your favorite chair?”

“Guys?”

Farah's head was poking through the door, a frown on her face as she saw the way they seemed to be putting the chair itself on trial. She closed the door slowly, looking around the room for an answer to what was happening. Dirk gave a dramatic “aha”, and moved his hand to point at her.

“Farah! _You_ tell him what you did to the chair!” Farah's face fell.

“I- what?”

“The chair! You and Tina, when you first started dating! Remember, the chair and you two and a distinct lack of clothing, and-” Todd put his hands out, stepping back.

“Wait, hold on, you slept with Tina? Since when!?”

“Since- okay, you know what?” Farah sidestepped both of them to her desk, where she dug in one of her drawers for a moment before pulling out a roll of duct tape. She threw it at Dirk who just barely caught it before crossing her arms. He stared down at the roll as confusion blossomed from his chest.

“Farah?”

“Tape. Mouth. Now.” She glared at him. “We'll figure this out when the Rowdies get back. They’re down near Olympia, so, it shouldn’t be too long. Hopefully.”

Dirk shifted on his feet, his face not quiet frowning, but portraying something that greatly upset Todd. He met eyes with him,and Todd saw what looked like the remnants of panic. Dirk took a breath.

“Er, Farah?”

“Hm?”

“I, don't really feel very comfortable with this.” Farah raised her eyebrows.

“Why not? It's not like we're asking you to run into the line of fire.”

“Yes, that, I know, but. But as a child people didn't really enjoy my constant talking and I got, ah, shut up, a lot. Priest rather enjoyed it when I couldn't talk. Said he found it funny.” Dirk was beginning to look extremely rattled, and his expression wasn't unlike when he was recovering from one of his nightmares. Todd never knew what to say during those nights, and usually all he could do to help was get a blanket for Dirk to wrap himself in while he argued and bartered with his past.

Dirk could rarely be touched when recovering from one, and that was the only thing that Todd had an answer as to why.

Farah nodded, closing her eyes. She always needed to take a moment whenever Priest was mentioned.

“Right. Him. Naturally. Of course he's not above gagging a child.” Farah stalked forward, ripping the tape from Dirk's hand. She tossed it aside, landing it next to Mona, and shook her head as she turned back to Dirk.

“Dirk? Hey.” She frowned. “I just, want to try something, okay? Can you cover your mouth for me? We have to figure this out.” Dirk nodded, still not looked up at her. Slowly, he brought up his hand to cover his mouth. Farah nodded again.

“Good. Now we wait.”

A strange sensation rose up in Todd's throat. He couldn't describe it; it was as if someone was sticking something down his throat, trying to pull something out. Everything was tingling. He took a look at Farah, and wasn't able to stop himself from talking.

“What are even waiting for? The Rowdies? What can they do but break the agency again? I'm not down for seeing them for at least another month.” Farah narrowed her eyes.

“I thought you said they were welcome any time?”

“I was lying. They're so loud. And destructive. And cryptic. Have you met Martin? Seriously. They're cool and all but all they do is eat disgusting stuff and break shit. Do you know, what I once caught Cross drinking? I don't even know how they are still alive.”

Farah rolled her eyes.

“I don't think- wait, what was he drinking?” Todd shuddered.

“Some kind of strawberry syrup caramel thing? All I know is that it was gross.” Todd turned to look at Dirk. “I can’t believe you have Mona shapeshift into me. That’s amazingly uncool and makes me super uncomfortable. What would even give an idea like that?” Dirk was frowning him, glancing quickly between Todd and Farah. Todd glanced back at Farah and pointed.

“And you! I get so angry that you killed Priest. I wanted to do that but you just had to swoop in and save the day like you always do. I’m very appreciative of you keeping us safe and not dead, but damn it, we’re not damsels in distress!”

“Are you, okay?” Farah asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

“No! Something is wrong with Dirk, and I’m tired, and why can’t I stop talking?!” Todd took a deep breath and bit down his lip. His head was starting to spin and the urge to continue talking was pushing him forward. Dirk sighed and removed his hand from his mouth.

“Well that worked terribly. It seems that whatever this is can be passed through the bond. Perhaps. We don’t know enough about werewolves for me to make any sort of statement one way or the other. I blame Martin for that.” As soon as Dirk started speaking Todd felt himself relax, confirming the bond theory. Todd groaned and looked over at Farah.

“Yeah, so, we’re just gonna, go wait at the apartment. I guess bring the Rowdies round when they get here. Sorry, for, well, the yelling.” Todd said, watching as Farah turned back towards her desk.

“Yeah. That sounds like a plan. I don’t really know if it’s a good plan, but it keeps you away from me, and that’s all I ask at this point.” Farah grabbed the forms Dirk had filled out and tossed them in the trash next to her desk.

“I’m sorry this, whatever this is, is happening. But please leave before I shoot one of you. With love of course, but also with my gun.” Todd nodded and grabbed Dirk by the wrist.

“Yup, will do. See you in a bit!” Todd pushed Dirk out the door before he had a chance to say anything and they headed back to the apartment.

Todd didn't say anything as they walked back to the apartment; Dirk was already supplying one hundred percent of the conversation. Once he got started talking, he just couldn't stop, and he had gone from talking about Farah to a haunted dumpster within five minutes. Apparently, not being able to lie also meant not being able to withhold information. Todd's head was spinning; he had no idea what Dirk was really even saying.

Dirk didn't feel particularly happy about this. Todd could feel the emotions coming from Dirk, and it seemed to be more resignation than anything. Dirk was happy not even twenty four hours ago, and with any luck, he would be again soon. At the moment, Dirk had moved onto the topic of sleeping; specifically, sleeping in alleyways.

“And do you know, dumpster lids make excellent shelters? I never would have imagined. They block the wind too. If not for the smell I would have just, stayed there. Did you _know_ I found a body in one once? Of course I didn't actually find it until after I woke up, so I was just, sleeping, next to a body. Which is in line with the theme of my life. I only woke up anyway because of that horrible van, and their horrible music. They used to to listen to this awful song that was like, a beacon for-”

“Dirk.” Todd stopped at the apartment door to pull out his keys, unlocking it and swinging the door open. “Can you just, like, stop talking? For two seconds?”

“I'm sorry to annoy you, Todd. It makes me feel like I've failed when I do. And I despise failing, it reminds me of Blackwing.” Dirk slapped his hand to his forehead as he stepped inside, suddenly shifting his gaze from Todd. “Sorry. Didn't want to say that.”

Dirk fell onto the couch, sighing as he rested his head in his hands. Watching him sulk on the couch, Todd got one of his famous bad ideas.

Dirk's nightmares. Blackwing. The truth.

Todd bit his lip as the emotions churned in his stomach; this was a bad idea. He couldn't imagine how much trouble he would get in when all this was over and done with, but he couldn't help himself. He had to know, and now Dirk couldn't avoid him. Maybe he could learn how to help with the nightmares.

Todd sat carefully next to Dirk, who was doing his best to keep his mouth clamped shut. Todd took a breath before addressing him.

“Hey Dirk, can I, ask you something? Or like, a few things?” Todd glanced over at Dirk.

“I would really prefer if you didn’t.” Dirk answered, glancing quickly back over. Todd nodded; at least he knew Dirk was being honest.

“Why not?”

“I’m afraid you might ask things I don’t want to talk about. You tend to be rather nosy.” He slapped his hand over his mouth and looked away, ears going red. Todd tried his best not to chuckle to himself; Dirk wasn't wrong. This was definitely one of his noisier moments in life.

Amanda was right, Todd needed to cool down.

“I don't, mean to be, you know.” Todd tried to get Dirk to turn back around, touching his shoulder. “I just, want to know how to help you. I don't know what to do most of the time when you get upset. Which is like, a lot.”

“Well of course it’s a lot. My entire childhood was taken away from me by a crazy government agency.” Dirk sighed closing his eyes and dropping his head to rest against his chest. Todd leaned in so that his whole body was wrapped around Dirk's, trying to keep him safe from the distress he was experiencing. Todd swallowed; he already hated himself for what he was about to bring up.

“Was, was Priest part of that? Is that why he's in your nightmares?” Todd felt the guilt churning in his stomach.

“Priest brought me in originally. He started out, not kind, but not the evil psychopath he become. He would beat me, quite often. Whenever I failed the tests.”

Todd felt the familiar urge of wanting to kill Priest himself, muted only by the fact that he was already dead.

“But, wait hold on. Didn't you say you failed them like, all the time?” Todd raised an eyebrow, praying to whoever was listening that he was wrong. Something about the way Dirk was feeling told him otherwise, though.

“Every time. I spent quite a bit of time in the medical ward.” Dirk wasn’t looking at Todd, instead he was staring down at his hands as they wrung together.

“Shit.” Todd swore under his breath, his voice quiet. “What the hell did they do to you?”

Todd held onto Dirk a little bit tighter.

“Everything you could possibly imagine. I was stabbed repeatedly. Every bone broken at least twice. Once Priest hit me so hard in the head with a baton I was in a coma for about two months, and then directly after that he broke my leg for being petulant. Most of the tests involved electrical shocks. Once they tried testing to see if the possibility of physical harm affected the tests so they had a table with slots and I had to place my hand over the slot that didn’t have the knife. Needless to say that didn’t work.” Dirk took a deep breath, trying to even out his breathing which had started coming in panicked gasps.

“I- Jesus. Dirk, I.” Todd paused, closing his eyes as he felt the agony in Dirk's chest. “I'm sorry. I wish I could, I don't know. Do something. To help.”

“You could stop asking questions.”

“Yeah. I know it's a, pretty shitty move.” Todd lowered his gaze, staring at Dirk's hands over his shoulder.

“Probably the worst thing you’ve done since I met you. And that includes the monster comment.” Todd's mouth went dry as he remembered that day, and the things he had said to Dirk. He could have been sick, thinking back, now that he knew why Dirk had reacted to his comment that way.

“Did they, call you that?” Todd's voice was quiet, barely discernible even though he was right next to Dirk's ear. He felt Dirk tense up in his grip.

“Among other things. Abomination was Priest’s favorite.”

“You know, if he wasn't like, dead, I would kill him.” Todd sighed. “You know they can't like, hurt you, right? They're gone.”

“I thought that for sixteen years and look how that turned out. And then again once the agency was running. They let me do that, so why would I worry they would come back? But classic me, wrong again.” Dirk’s voice was barely a whisper, his eyes clamped shut. Todd tried to push any positive emotions he could find within himself in Dirk's direction, only to be met with more pain.

Todd felt a growl rise up in his throat as the thought that Dirk was always afraid registered. He was constantly afraid that Blackwing would come back for him, that Priest would find him. Todd’s grip on Dirk loosened.

“We killed him. Farah shot him. He's not coming back for you. And if by some weird universe thing that he does, I'm not leaving you until I know you're safe. Okay? Hey.” Todd raised his hand, running his fingers lightly through Dirk's hair. “I'm not letting anyone hurt you. Okay?”

“You mean like last time? You did really well with that.”

Ouch.

“I'll be better prepared this time. I'll get Farah to teach me… something. Or the Rowdies. They're our pack. They won't let anyone hurt you either.” Todd took an uneven breath as he searched his mind for a way to calm Dirk down, finding nothing.

Why had he done this again?

“Nothing keeps me safe. Ever. Not you, not the universe. Nothing. If Blackwing wants me back, they’ll do it.” Dirk pushed out of Todd’s grasp and stood, walking towards the window, wrapping his arms around his torso.

Todd didn't bother to reach out for him as he walked away; Dirk obviously didn't want to be touched anymore. It wasn't like Todd _wanted_ to make Dirk relive all of these awful things, he just wanted to help. It occurred to him that, besides the fact he knew what to say after nightmares now, he had no idea how this was actually going to help. If anything, the last time Todd had seen Dirk look this hollow was when they were trapped in the Cardenas’ house with Priest. He didn't comment on the way Dirk was shivering, despite it being at least sixty degrees in the apartment.

“Screw the universe. I want to keep you safe and that's what's going to happen, whether the 'stream of creation’ likes it or not. It can't just do this to you, and… it's going to have to, I don't know. Go through me? Before it does any more shit to you. I'll hit Priest myself, and Ken.” Todd glanced up at Dirk, who was unnaturally unmoving.

“It will definitely go through you. It’s gone through everyone else I’ve ever loved. You, Farah, my mother. Everyone leaves. The universe doesn’t care about me.”

“Mother? Dirk, what… did she… did she give you up? Or?” Todd was taken aback by the mention of Dirk's mother; he had never mentioned anything about his family before.

“She died. When I was small. Promised she would never leave. No one has ever been able to keep a promise around me. The universe won’t allow it.”

Todd gritted his teeth, digging in his mind to find the nicest, calmest emotion he possibly could before shoving it Dirk.

“You know what the worst thing is? I can’t remember her face. Or her voice. I just remember her being there. And then not. Universe couldn’t even let my memory hold on to her.” Todd stood up, straightening himself as he took a step towards Dirk, who didn't turn around.

“The universe can kiss my ass, Dirk. It can't separate us. We're bonded, remember? I'm not leaving.” Todd stopped walking when he was just out of arm's reach of Dirk. “I promise.”

“Please don’t.”

“Why?” Todd crossed his arms. “I will literally punch the universe in the face if I have to. I'm not leaving.”

Dirk spun on the spot, his eyes burning.

“You can promise all you want but the universe is stronger than both of us and it has never been kind. You can’t promise you won’t leave because you don’t know. What if you do? That is my biggest fear! Losing you!”

Todd went silent; what was he supposed to say?

“If I leave man you have full permission to get as pissed as you want. But right now I'm here, and I'm not going to go anywhere until you feel alright!” Todd tried his best to keep his voice at a normal volume. He didn't want to cause a panic attack on Dirk's behalf.

“Well then you’ll be waiting a while. I never feel alright. Ever. I am constantly afraid of everything and I hate it so much.” Todd reached his hand out, eyeing Dirk as he waited for him to take it or to walk away.

“Dirk. I need to help you. I need you to feel safe. Just once.” Dirk glared down at Todd’s hand.

“What if you can’t do that?”

“Then I'll keep trying. I'll try until the universe implodes or whatever. I'm not stopping until you feel safe, man. I promise.” Todd's gaze softened. “I love you. I want you to be safe.”

“I love you too. Slightly less at this exact moment. But, still.” Dirk sighed and grabbed Todd’s hand, glancing up at him. Todd tried to flash him a smile, pulling himself closer to him.

Todd took a moment to take in Dirk's face, which still had the same panicked look that it had adopted when Todd had mentioned Priest.

“The universe can hold off for awhile, yeah? Just me and you.”

“You and me.”

“Exactly. No one else.” Todd pulled Dirk in, trying to shelter his significantly bigger body from anything the outside world had to offer. If no one else was going to help, then he was going to do it himself. They sank slowly to the ground, wrapped around each other.

“I feel I should tell you I’m very angry with you about this and we will be discussing it later.” Dirk said into Todd’s shoulder. Todd nodded.

“I figured.” He turned his head, resting it in Dirk's neck so that his whole world was made up entirely of Dirk's scent. He felt Dirk hold on tighter to him.

“Hey.” Todd sat back up, looking at Dirk face to face. “Whatever kind of bad shit comes our way, we'll be prepared for it. Even if the universe splits in half. I'll make sure you don't get hurt.”

“While that is very sweet, you understand that I don’t fully believe you, right?”

Todd nodded, watching the way Dirk's hair was falling into his face. Dirk's eyes had finally begun to lose the panic overtaking them, and it filled Todd's heart with a warm hope.

“Yeah well. I think that's just because our lives are, kind of weird.” Todd looked out of the window, glancing at the clouds in the sky. “I mean, you're under some kind of truth spell or, whatever. When did the Rowdies say they were getting back, anyway?”

“Not soon enough.” Dirk frowned, leaning back into Todd’s shoulder.

“Do you want to distract yourself? Or just, sit?” Todd ran his fingers through Dirk's hair, down his neck as he pulled him in closer.

“I don’t like either of those options.” Dirk mumbled.

“What _do_ you want to do?” Todd raised his eyebrows, glancing down at the back of Dirk's head. “Anything you want, man. Even if you want to like, yell at me or whatever.”

“Ideally, curl up and die, but I understand how that’s not really an option. So, television is fine.”

Todd looked up at the DVDs scattering the table above, spread out after having been forgotten to be put back after their last movie night. There were mostly Disney movies, due to Dirk's preference of them. He nearly laughed as he read the title of the movie closest to them.

“Moana is a bad option, right?” Todd’s chest seized up every time he thought about that movie; all it did was remind him of when he'd lost Dirk to Blackwing, to Priest. They hadn't even opened the case since, neither wanting to bring up that night. No one really preferred to talk about it, even Farah.

“Yes, but also, I really do like that movie. The chicken is my favorite.” Todd snorted softly, shaking his head.

“Wonder if you two would get along.” Dirk laughed lightly.

“Probably, he seems very lovable.” Todd pulled himself out of the embrace, guiding Dirk slowly back to the couch. Dirk didn't protest.

“Maybe you two would be friends. He's a real cool guy.” Todd was grinning as he thought about the image of Dirk having a pet chicken; the idea was just too amusing. Especially that chicken. That chicken was just too stupid to do much of anything, much less help Dirk out.

“Todd, you’ve become slightly annoying. Please just pick a movie.” Todd raised his hands in defeat as he bent down, grabbing a pair of cases at random. He examined them, narrowing his eyes.

You have got to be kidding.

He held up the cases so that Dirk could see them, holding them out so that he would be able to read the titles.

“We got Die Hard and Beauty and The Beast.”

“Beauty and the Beast. Die Hard is terrible. I don’t understand why you like it. At all.” Dirk said, frowning at the DVD. Todd frowned back, throwing Die Hard back onto the table.

“It's pretty good once you get past the bad bits. It's a masterpiece.”

Todd threw the DVD into the player, grabbing the remote from in front of the TV. He held it up, offering to throw it to Dirk as he made his way back to the couch.

“It’s really not. You’ve made me sit through it four times. It just gets worse.” Dirk held out his hand and caught the remote, clicking through to the main menu. Todd stuck out his tongue, draping himself over the back end of the seat as he sat next to Dirk, careful to keep a safe distance.

“I don't know man. Maybe you're just missing out.” Todd lowered his head as he watched Dirk hit play, and bite his lip through the opening credits. Todd watched as Dirk resisted the urge to speak, focusing on the television without looking over.

“Sorry,” Todd said quietly. The voice of the opening story was blasting through the apartment, making him hard to hear. He knew he wouldn't be forgiven so easily. Dirk continued to bite his lip, taking slow deep breaths. Todd felt his voice rise in his throat, and his head started to pound as it tried to jump out of his mouth.

“I mean,” he started, unable to stop himself. “You're always so cryptic. And it's like, kind of worrying. You wake up from nightmares every night and cry about Priest and being wrong and Riggins or whatever and I can like, hear you crying in the bathroom but you lock the door. And it's not like I know how to help-”

Todd slapped his hand over his mouth, turning to Dirk with wide eyes as Dirk stared at him, his mouth agape.

“I’m sorry me not wanting to talk about my traumatic childhood was so tiring for you.”

“No, Dirk, wait. Hold on that's- I don't know what that was that came out wrong. You're not, tiring. You're-” Todd groaned, hiding his face in his hands. “That's not what I meant. I just wish I knew how to help. I-”

“You do help.” Dirk said, still frowning over at him. Todd looked up from his hands, not bothering to hide the shame coming off of him.

“Have you met me? How the hell do I help? All I do is make you talk about shit you want to forget.”

“You’re there. And yes, today has been rather terrible, and I would prefer if we didn’t talk until the Rowdies get here, but, you’re still here. And that helps. A little. Not a lot. But it does.”

Todd moaned.

“Do I have permission to punch Ken in the face if we see him again for kidnapping you?”

“When have you ever needed my permission to do anything? You barely listen to me right now.” Dirk’s frown had softened but Todd could still feel the annoyance. Todd chuckled softly, not really feeling in the laughing mood.

This sucked.

“Still. Blackwing is your business. If I'm going to hit Ken, it should probably go by you first. You know?”

He leaned back onto the couch, avoiding Dirk's gaze as he stared unblinking at the television. He felt the odd sensation rising up in his throat again, which meant Dirk had covered his mouth again. This was probably the only thing about their Bond that he was starting to hate with a passion. They needed to get rid of this truth problem fast.

Todd glanced over at Dirk, who indeed had his hand over his mouth. He narrowed his eyes as he made eye contact with Todd; he knew exactly what he was doing.

Great.

“Ken just pisses me off. I mean, he was like partners in crime with Bart or something. And he just? Betrays her? What the hell?” Todd groaned internally as he heard himself start to go off, unable to stop. “And because of him Blackwing fucked up your mental shit, again. And all _I_ could do was bomb the place. Which, wasn't even me! That was Farah! It all makes me want to, like, do… something. Preferably with a bat.

“And then you're over here like, dying internally or whatever because you decided that no one can help you. Even Mona gets worried sometimes! And it's not that you're annoying we just, want to help out. I don't know. I find it really shitty that you're covering your mouth to make me talk. Guess I've been a pretty shitty boyfriend today though. Can you stop?”

Todd glared at Dirk, frowning as he was finally able to stop the flow of words coming from his mouth. He hated every bit of this, and Dirk knew it. Dirk raised his eyebrow and Todd could see the smirk, even with his hand over his mouth.

“You know exactly what you're doing, and it sucks. I can feel you enjoying this.” Todd closed his eyes as he leaned back. “Like, what's the point of making me tell the truth if you can't ask anything, anyway?”

He glanced again at Dirk, who only shrugged.

“Cheeky little shit.” Todd shook his head, unable to stop the small grin forming on his face.

“It’s not fun is it?” Dirk asked, his hand having returned to his lap. Todd glanced over and sighed.

“No.”

“And making me answer questions was very shitty of you. But it doesn’t make you a shitty boyfriend.” Dirk tried for a soft smile. Todd rolled his eyes, not forgetting to send Dirk a wave of happiness to show him that he wasn't actually serious.

“Eh. Debatable.”

“I can, debate it that is. If you would like. But I would much rather not. Though I doubt we’ll be able to get through the movie without having more back and forth problems. I wish the Rowdies were here.”

“They said like a couple hours right? That was a while ago. They're probably nearly here.” Todd looked out the window, longing for the moment when they would hear them pull up and break something. It was a sound that he wasn't usually fond of. “They have to be at least at the city limits.”

“Ugh. I am so angry that no one explained whatever this is before it happened. Why don’t we know everything about werewolves yet? Why are we still learning shit?” Dirk dropped his head back against the couch.

Todd debated on reaching over to Dirk, but instead rested his hand on the couch. He didn't know how Dirk would react to that right now. Maybe if he waited a bit longer, after all the the tension finally left Dirk's chest, it would be alright.

He saw Dirk frown, probably at the torn emotion that Todd was feeling.

“Probably because Martin is like, way too cryptic. Have you noticed that?” Todd looked up at the ceiling. “He dodges like, any and all questions, all the time. He's worse than you.”

“Can’t argue with that.”

“You should tell him that when he gets here.” Todd couldn't help but notice that the frown had left, and Dirk was suppressing a grin again. He bit his lip.

Maybe they could fix this.

“Something tells me that I probably will. Which will just be fantastic. I’ll probably get hit. I hit Martin once. He swatted at my face like a blind cat. It was ridiculous.” Todd couldn't help the laugh that escaped his lips.

“A cat?” And then Todd processed the rest of what he had said. “Holy shit. You hit Martin? When they still hated you? Dude, that's like, sort of cool. When was this?”

“Wendimoor. I was running away from Beast and then ran into them and then there was like a thing and I punched him in the face. I even asked him not to hit me.” Dirk laughed lightly. “He’s completely blind you know.”

“What? Doesn't he wear his glasses for like, decoration or something? Don't tell me he actually needs those things.” Todd's eyes widened as the implications of Martin needing glasses hit him.

“Yes. Very much. Couldn’t see me if he tried.”

“Oh I am so holding that to him.”

Todd smiled as he felt Dirk's chest finally lighten, and the aura of the room felt brighter than it had all day as the sounds of Bell singing filled their ears. Dirk loved this song.

“Wonder what else he won't tell us. Glasses aren't a big deal.” Todd watched the way the sun made Dirk's hair almost glow, and he knew that he was already fallen back into his old habits of staring at Dirk.

“Knowing our luck he probably has an evil twin brother that we know nothing about. Or maybe he’s actually an alien. Space werewolf.”

“Nah.” Todd waved his hand dismissively, laughing. “If he had a twin, they'd like, be a werewolf too. We'd know.”

“Would we though? I mean, we didn’t know about whatever this is. And the glasses, you didn’t know about that. All I’m saying is that people like to keep secrets and I’m usually the last to know.”

Todd turned his whole body towards Dirk, smirking.

“You should ask him. If he's got an evil space twin.”

“Will do. Right after what other werewolf shit aren’t you telling us.” Todd nodded, pulling himself closer to Dirk. He curled into the detective, turning his eyes on the television to watch the movie. He held on to Dirk's arm.

“Sorry, man.”

“It is what it is. Or something. It’s probably the universe having a laugh. But that’s not new.”

Todd laid his head on Dirk's lap, refusing to let go of his hand as they sat there. The movie seemed to be helping, and soon he heard Dirk laughing as Chip scared Belle’s dad. Dirk had always liked Chip, and it warmed Todd's heart to see him smiling again. He really needed to stop upsetting him; whatever he wanted from it probably wasn't worth it.

He would much rather see Dirk like this.

The moment was broken just as Lumiere started singing his iconic song, and the sound of a loud crash from outside announced the arrival of The Rowdy 3. Todd looked up at Dirk, who was already swiveling his head around to try and hear them. Todd grunted as he pushed himself up, allowing Dirk to jump out of his place and onto his feet. His eyes lit up as they heard yelling on the stairs.

“Fantastic! The terrors are here.” Dirk growled toward the door.

“Wow Dirk, tell us what you really think.”

Todd jumped as the door, it's lock never having been fixed after all this time, swung open. He saw Martin stalk in with Vogel hanging off of him. Amanda and Farah were talking to Gripps and Cross in the hallway, probably telling them about the situation. Or at least, Farah was. Vogel jumped off of Martin and bounced over to greet Dirk.

“Hey Dirk! Why’d you need us?! Something happen!?” Vogel waved at Todd. “Hey Pup!”

Martin nodded in greeting as Dirk turned his attention from him to Vogel, who was smiling up at him with wide eyes. Todd got the sudden urge to jump out of the window before anything bad happened.

“Vogel, it’s lovely to see you. I missed you. Cross, Gripps, less so. Amanda, please damage your brother for me. And you!” He pointed at Martin. “What the hell are you not telling us about lycanthropy you blind cat!?”

Todd's mouth dropped as the whole room went silent, and he jumped off the couch to try and control the situation before it got out of hand.

“He's, kind of having filter issues. Ever since we left he's been like, unable to lie. At all. Which _apparently_ ,” Todd glared at Dirk. “That includes telling people everything. We figured you would like, help or whatever.”

Martin raised his eyebrow, leaning against the entrance to the kitchen as he looked Dirk up and down.

“Apparently.” Martin pulled a cigarette out of his pocket, tilting his head as he continued to stare at Dirk. “Anythin’ else he's sayin’?”

“Would you like your list of faults by most annoying or alphabetical?” Dirk asked, glaring the eldest Rowdy down. “Because I would like to start with the amount of information you are willing to share. Which as of right now seems nonexistent.” Vogel frowned.

“Why’re you so upset, man? What's happening?” Vogel's jumped in place as he tired to think of something to say. “Maybe I can help! What's got you all wacked up!?”

Todd got a bad taste in his mouth.

“I can’t stop telling the truth! I’ve tried! But when I do Todd just picks up and then that’s amazingly terrible. And I’m terrified that I might not be able to stop! Why did this happen?”

Todd heard Cross mutter under his breath, turning to Amanda to whisper something into her ear. She gawked at him.

“Can't be too bad, Brit. We'll figure it out. Always do.” Martin brought the lighter, which Todd didn't see him pull out, to his face. Martin sighed as he pulled the cigarette from his mouth. Dirk mocked a laugh.

Vogel eyed Cross as he laughed, and Todd did just the same. Did he know something?

“Can’t be that bad? Did you spend the better part of the last hour talking about your terrible experiences at Blackwing even though you didn’t want to?” Martin shrugged.

“Can't say I have. Don't sound nice.”

“At this moment in time, I hate you. So much. Stop being cryptic and tell me what’s wrong. Something is wrong!” Martin backed up, giving Dirk space as he converged onto him. Dirk was beginning to feel angry, and it was rubbing off onto Todd. Vogel’s frowned deepened as he smelled the tension bouncing around the room.

“We gotta go over the facts, Brit. Can't decide nothin’ 'till we do.” Martin paused, tilting his head. “Ain't ever been told I'm cryptic.”

“Facts? Fine. I can’t stop telling the truth. It started after you left. You are notorious for not telling people things, and the prime example is bonding. I had to explain the merged souls to Todd because you didn’t explain it properly. What do you even know about bonding anyway? You don’t have one.” Dirk crossed his arms watching Martin. Martin growled softly, and Todd nearly ended up pulling Dirk back.

“I ain't need romance in my life. Ain't fit.” Martin crossed his arms, and the entire room was waiting with bated breath. Even Cross and Gripps weren't speaking. “I know a lot. Just gotta ask. Ain't ask and I ain't tellin’.”

Todd shifted on his feet. Martin looked like he was getting pissed off, and if Dirk got into a fight, he would be dragged into it as well. They didn't need this.

Martin took a step forward.

“We ain't knowin’ nothin’ until we go over what happened this morning.”

“You left, and then we drove back, and Todd said I was being passive aggressive and then I stopped being able to lie. Not that I particularly like lying but I’m sure Todd doesn’t appreciate knowing my thoughts on literally everything!” Dirk gestured towards Todd who was glaring at him. “And watch this!” Dirk slapped his hand over his mouth.

Todd swore.

“Oh come on, that's not fair.” Todd made a note to hit something later on. “Now you're making me talk this shit.”

Todd glanced at Martin, who was watching him with a curious intensity. Martin's face shifted, and a look of realization dawned on his features. Todd scowled.

“Jesus Christ, you're annoying. Can't you let up and chill for like, two seconds? Actually tell us something? You're literally the weirdest person in the world. And I've seen Amanda steal shit from the snack box! Even though she's allowed in there! I've seen Dirk defeat a giant water monster. Somehow you are like, still weirder. You're the type of guy who like, hides deep shit from people and then turns out to be the villain.

“Can you please uncover your mouth? It's making me angry, and I'm probably going to break something. Preferably a window. Preferably a van window.”

Vogel was looking around frantically at everyone as they argued, visibly upset. Dirk dropped his hand and glared back over at Martin.

“But I’m sure everything is fine, right Martin?” Martin took another step closer.

“Don't know what you think this is, Brit, but it ain't as bad as you think. Things can be fixed.”

“Stop. Being. Vague!” Dirk growled, making Todd start backward. Martin scowled back, gesturing Vogel forward. Vogel shook his head.

“Ah, yeah man I, think I'm good here! Thanks!” Martin shook his head as Vogel backed away, giving a thumbs up.

Todd was holding on to the couch, the anger radiating off of Dirk enough to knock him to his knees. He needed to do something, or else he was going to have a pissed off werewolf in the middle of his apartment.

“C’mere, Vogel.” Martin said, ignoring Dirk's glaring. “Gotta tell Brit here to stop.”

“Tell me to stop? How would Vogel telling me to stop help any of this?”

Martin grinned, reaching forward a few steps to pull Vogel lightly into the group. Vogel seemed to be distressed at all of the anger. Martin pushed him towards Dirk.

“Tell him.” Vogel stuttered as he tried to listen to Martin, and Martin just shook his head. “Tell him like you mean it, Vogel.”

“I think maybe we should like, uh, listen to music or something!” Vogel jittered, wringing his hands. “Maybe like! Not this! I don't wanna make Brit mad!”

“Tell him.”

Vogel moaned.

“Uh, yeah. Yeah I guess!” Vogel locked eyes with Dirk, who had a livid look in his eyes that made Vogel falter for a second. He took a breath. “I need you to like, stop telling the truth! 'Cause you’re all upset! And all that!”

Martin pulled Vogel back immediately, pushing him into Gripps standing behind him. He puffed on the cigarette in his mouth, and Todd felt the urge to punch him in the face.

“Well?”

“Well? I– I don’t feel any different.” Dirk frowned. Martin walked up to him, and glared down at him as Dirk began to stutter.

“What color’s the sky?”

“Blue. This is–”

“Lie.” Martin growled.

“Um, green? Green? Oh my god, the sky is green! Todd!” Dirk smiled over, seemingly forgetting Martin standing in front of him. Todd gave a half-hearted thumbs up, still keeping a close eye on Martin. He slapped Dirk's shoulder.

“See? Not that bad.”

He leaned back against the wall, making eye contact with Todd. Todd stared back questioningly as Vogel pumped his fist into the air, whooping in victory at Dirk's ability to lie.

“Yeah! Yeah man! You can lie again!” Vogel pounced onto Dirk, hugging him. “Tell another one, Brit!”

“Martin doesn’t need those glasses to see.” Dirk smirked over, watching as Martin rolled his eyes. He heard Amanda snicker, and Martin sighed as he pushed himself off the wall.

“Cross, Gripps, Drummer. Mind if we have a moment? You stay, Vogel. Farah can show 'em to the van.” Martin threw his cigarette into the sink. “We gotta have a talk up here.”

Amanda mocked a frown as she pushed Cross and Gripps out of the room, flashing Martin the middle finger. Farah narrowed her eyes, but let Amanda drag her away anyway. Todd and Dirk were left in the room with Vogel and Martin alone, and Todd took the chance to go over to Dirk and pull him away from Martin, who only nodded.

“Right. You seem angry.” Martin pointed at Todd, who was currently holding Dirk by the couch. Todd gritted his teeth.

“No shit, Martin. What the hell was that!”

“Thing about Werewolves? Got a might lot goin’ on. Whole lotta power. Especially if you bite someone.” Martin flitted his eyes from Dirk to Vogel, and Dirk struggled out of Todd's grasp to stand up straight.

“What do you mean? Power? What power? That truth, thing?” Martin nodded, and Vogel looked up to Martin to answers.

“He told you to tell the truth.” Vogel’s face fell, and Dirk blinked in surprise.

“So, Vogel can mind control me? Or, something? That seems, wrong somehow, is that wrong?” Dirk frowned looking back and forth between Vogel and Martin.

“When you bite someone, your blood becomes their own. Anything they say has a power. Depends on, how much you like the person.” Martin pointed at Vogel, who looked like he was about to cry. “You and Vogel are mighty close, Brit. He's got more power than a stranger would.”

“Hold on.” Todd walked forward, raising his hands. “You're just saying this now? What the hell!”

Martin tilted his head to the side in response.

“Didn't ask.” Vogel looked down to the ground, frowning as he tried to work something out in his head. He backed away from Dirk, who had focused his attention on him as he got quite and quieter.

“Did I, make you upset? Did I mess up?” Vogel’s voice was quiet, much unlike the usual boisterous Rowdy. “Did I mess up, Brit?” Dirk frowned over at him.

“No, Vogel, it’s not your fault. You didn’t know, it’s not your fault.” Vogel shook his head, backing away.

“No way man! I'll- I'll make you like, tell me the truth again or something! I- you gotta like, you're lying man!” Vogel put his hand to his head, ruffling his own hair as he tried to steady himself. “I did a bad thing again! Like, like with the biting thing!”

“Vogel, I’m not lying. I know how you might think I am, but I swear, I’m not. This isn’t your fault. Neither was the bite, that was, that was Blackwing, remember? It wasn’t your fault and it’s not your fault now.” Dirk moved forward slowly towards Vogel. Martin stayed on the wall; Vogel couldn't have more than one person near him at a time when he panicked.

“But like! I made you sad, man! And mad! Both of them! Then you had to talk all about Blackwing!” Vogel rubbed his eyes, frustrated. Dirk sighed.

“Vogel, tell me to tell the truth again. It’s okay, it’s completely fine. Just tell me to do it again.”

Vogel shook his head, frowning heavily at everything but Dirk.

“I didn't mean to, man. I'm like, way super sorry!” He quieted his voice. “I can smell you’re way frustrated at me, man.”

“It’s not you. I’m not mad at you. Please, just tell me again. I won’t get mad. I swear.” Vogel bounced on his feet, wringing his hands as he looked to Martin for help. Martin nodded, and Vogel sighed.

Todd had rarely seen him so unhappy.

“You, should like, do that thing. That truth thing.” Vogel avoided Dirk's gaze. Todd felt the now familiar pull of wanting to speak, but Dirk beat him to it.

“You did nothing wrong. It wasn’t your fault. I’m not mad at you. You’re my friend, and I trust you completely.” Vogel dared a glance up at Dirk, who was looking down at him softly. He made a small noise.

“This like, super sucks.” He looked over to Martin. “Why didn't you tell me man? Does that mean you can do that crazy shit to me?”

A dark expression crossed Martin's face, and for a moment Todd was genuinely scared of him. Martin took a moment to fix his face after a moment, and after it was gone, Todd wasn't sure he had seen it at all.

“Ain't ever gonna do that, Vogel.”

“Wish I'd known! Then I like, wouldn't have told you that, man!” Vogel turned back to Dirk, still frowning.

“You didn’t know, it’s not your fault. If anyone, it’s Martin’s fault. Vogel do you mind, telling me to stop before I say anything that gets me hit?” Vogel perked up.

“Oh! Yeah man! You should totally stop that truth stuff!” Vogel stared at Dirk with wide eyes as Dirk visibly deflated.

“Wait, you said that their, whatever, was stronger because they were friends. What about, me?” Todd asked, glancing over at Martin. Martin looked over in surprise; everyone had forgotten Todd was even there. “Like, the guy who bit me. He's still alive somewhere.”

“You ain't like him, right?”

“Not really. He kind of tried to kill me. I don't even know who he is.” Martin shrugged.

“He can probably order you around. You'd have a bit of that free will shit though. Not like Dirk.” Dirk opened his mouth to protest, but stopped as he tried to find an actual argument. He seemed to be having difficulty, and Todd couldn't blame him.

“Free will?”

“Let's say he wants you to go right. You could go left every few steps you take. That's how it works.” Martin waved his cigarette around. “Don't matter. Ain't ever gonna see him.” Todd scoffed at him.

“Yeah, sure, that sounds like the kind of luck we have.”

“Don't worry man! If we see him we'll like, punch his lights out!” Vogel jumped up, scrambling to reassure Todd with promises of violent. Dirk laughed.

“So there’s just a random stranger out there who could mind control my boyfriend at any point and we couldn’t stop him? Is that what you’re saying?” Dirk glared over at Martin, who nodded slowly.

“If you meet him. We'll get him if you do. Bitten smells the same as the one who bit 'em. Ain't too hard.” Martin gestured to Vogel. “Kid smells like me.”

“That's… kind of worrying.” Todd shared a glance with Dirk. Vogel locked his head out from behind him.

“You want my bat, Pup?” Todd shook his head.

“It's, fine. I'm sure it'll be fine. What's the chance we'll run into him again?” Todd tried to smile at Dirk, who didn't look convinced.

“Like you said, our luck. But, I’m sure it’ll be fine. Possibly. Probably. We’ll deal with that bridge when we burn it.”

Todd grimaced.

“That's… not the saying, Dirk.”

“It’s not? Well then, whatever it is, we’ll deal with it. Bridges or not.” Dirk said, still glaring at Martin out of the corner of his eye. Martin sighed, putting the cigarette back into his mouth.

“Speakin’ of burnin’,” He started, “The boys and I are stayin' for the night. Any plans?” Dirk groaned. Todd rolled his eyes, answering Martin before Dirk said something stupid.

“I guess we have some drinks in the fridge? We could all watch a movie or something.” He glared at Martin. “Quietly. Can you even get drunk?” Martin shook his head.

Well, that was to be expected. Todd had seen the three older Rowdies drink their weight in alcohol, and never once had they gotten even slightly intoxicated. Could werewolves not get drunk? Todd doubted his theory; he and Dirk had gotten drunk one too many times in the last few months after the case with the candle. Maybe Purebreds absorbed alcohol somehow?

Todd's head hurt.

“That's… not surprising, actually.” He sighed. “Is there any way you _can_ get drunk?”

“Wolfsbane.” Martin grunted over at him, and not for the first time today, Todd frowned at how cryptic he was. It was just plain annoying now, and with the way Dirk was feeling, he probably agreed.

“Thanks. That doesn't help. Where the hell do I get that shit from-”

Oh great.

“Todd! Todd! I know!” Dirk raised his hand, smiling proudly at his boyfriend. “That case! The candle case you remember, with the flaming bear. The green one. Those nice people told us about that store! The witch one!”

Todd, for the record, already hated this. He didn't like the local witches; they were sketchy. According to Farah, the witches out in places like Bergsberg were pretty nice. The witches in Seattle however were just downright shady. Todd didn't trust them as far as he could throw them, which wasn't very far, because he was pretty bad at picking people up. That particular lack in skill didn't help him much when the Rowdies wrestled him during the full moon.

He was going to have to go down to the shop, wasn't he?

“I don't know man. That place is weird. We almost died on that case. Five times.” Dirk rolled his eyes.

“You’re being ridiculous. It was eight. But the shop is supposed to be well stocked. I’m sure they have woofstane.”

“Wolfsbane. And I'd rather die than go there.” Todd flashed a glance at Vogel. “Not really. But I still don't feel like going. Can't we send someone else? Amanda's the one with the wand.”

“Todd, do you really think that bringing an interdimensional magic wand to a witch shop is a good plan? It’s just around the corner. If you don’t want to go, I can go.”

Todd shook his head.

“No. No way man. You are not going. You'll get sucked into some dangerous case or. Something. You got kidnapped last time you went to a corner store.”

“You can do it man! We'll be here!” Vogel smiled at him.

“I guess-”

“Wonderful! We’ll get the movie set up, order some pizza and you’ll be back before you know it.” Dirk smiled. Todd had a moment to think perhaps this had been Dirk’s plan all along. Cause now he was going to the store whether he wanted to or not.

“Fine. I guess. Whatever. I'm not picking up the eggs next time we run out, though.” Todd didn't mention that the last time he sent Dirk to the store for groceries, he came back with a small dragon.

Todd had never asked him about that one.

Todd pulled the keys from his pocket, still glaring at Martin as he pushed past. He wasn't done with him yet.

“Don't kill anyone until I get back.”

“No promises, Pup.”

Todd thought that perhaps he wanted to hit Martin himself. He headed out into the hall and down to the van, banging on the door. Amanda threw the door open and glared at him.

“You figure your shit out?” She asked. Todd groaned.

“Yeah, sure. Martin said you guys are chilling here tonight. Head on up, I’ve gotta run out to a shop really quick.” He headed away as the others piled out of the van. Todd hadn’t realized Farah was in the van but she called to him as he was walking away.

“Where are you going?” Todd pointed.

“Witch shop. I’ll be back in thirty minutes. Please make sure nobody dies!” He heard Farah grumble in agreement as he turned the corner and continued down the street.

* * *

**When Did My Entire Family Become Werewolves?**

Amanda followed the others up the stairs to the apartment where she found Dirk and Vogel on the couch and Martin leaning against the wall. The energy that had been bouncing around the room before had died down and Dirk was looking far more relaxed. She would have to ask him more about what happened later.

For the moment however, she wanted to talk to Martin.

Big decisions had never been something that Amanda took lightly. When she moved up to Seattle to be closer to Todd. When she had decided to join the Rowdies. When she had punched her fifth grade teacher in the face. The last one was probably more gut reaction than planning, but that wasn’t important. What was important was the thing she had been thinking about for more than a year.

She just wasn’t sure when to ask.

Now seemed, more or less better than all the other times she had thought about corning Martin. At least no one was actively getting shot.

Amanda broke away from the group and wandered over to him, he looked as she walked over, giving her a brief nod.

“Drummer.”

“Martin.” She smiled lightly, before taking a breath. She was going to get it out this time. “Do you, maybe, have like, a minute? To talk? About– I mean it’s nothing bad! Like, everything is chill, it’s just– Talking?”

Smooth.

Martin raised his eyebrows, glancing behind her at Vogel, who was being lured to the couch by Dirk and Cross with squeaky toys. He nodded again, running his hand through his hair.

“Now what's got your emotions all messed up?” He frowned, taking a deep breath in.

“Messed up? No! I’m just, ya know, it’s, really it’s not like, a _big_ deal. I just, maybe, outside?” She gestured weakly toward the door. Away from the others would be better. She could think clearer.

“Outside.” Martin pushed against the wall, standing to his full height. He looked to the door, waiting. Amanda took another breath and then followed, taking the lead and heading back down and out of the building. The sidewalk was clear and it’s not like anyone was going to be listening in.

Here worked.

“Someone die, Drummer? Parent?” He glanced at her, frowning again. “Brotzman boy say something?”

“Die? Oh god no. Or, I don’t think so. I hope not. And no, it’s not, anything to do with Todd, he’s, annoying as usual. No it’s, um, just a thing. A, thing.” She could do this, it was just a question. The worse he could say was no. And then that would be it.

Right? Right. Not like he’d kick her out of the group or something. Oh god, what if he kicked her out of the group? Wait, wasn’t she like in charge of the group. How did this work?

Why had she dragged him outside again?

Oh right.

“Well. Somethin’ has you twisted. Has for awhile.” He gestured to her. “Bad thoughts?”

“No, nothing like that. It’s not bad, it’s just it’s like, a big question. And I’m just, like, not sure how to ask and it’s just like. I don’t want to make you mad, or uncomfortable, or anything like that. And Todd, would probably be super pissed. But like, I’m an adult, and I do what I want and–”

She took a breath.

“It’s not bad. I promise. I just, I wanted to ask you something. If that’s okay?”

“Always okay to ask, Drummer. You know that. The rowdy boys are here for you.” He looked up to the window above, listening to the commotion from the apartment. “What's on your mind?”

“Okay. So like. You, and the guys, and Todd and whatever. Like. Um. Would you say that lycanthropy has negatively affected your life?” Good job, Amanda. Just, avoid the question.

Martin laughed, leaning against the beat brick wall of the building.

“Can't say that, ain't true. Got my boys. The moon is a good fun to have.” He paused. “Why?”

“Oh I just, ya know, wanted to know. And like, so, you were born this way yeah? And Vogel, and Dirk, and Todd, they were bitten which is cool. Like, what, what’s some of the like, benefits? Maybe.” Maybe if she rambled long enough she’d pass out.

Martin took a second longer than usual to answer, a look of bemusement growing on his face.

“Warm. Get a good dose of strength too. Great for breakin’. And you get the pack. Ain't nothing breaking the connection of a pack, Drummer.” Hr smiled at her. “Askin’ for a reason?”

“Yes! Yes. Of course I am. I’m not just asking a series of random questions that would be, insane. Um, yeah. Definitely. I just, I was wondering. And it’s okay if you say no, I just. So. I was wondering if maybe, you would, um, ya know. I want to be part of the pack. Like, a proper part. Ya know?” Her heart stopped functioning. She was pretty sure her heart had stopped beating all together. Martin stared at her for a solid minute, not saying anything.

Then he grunted.

“Okay.”

“Okay?”

“Okay.”

That couldn’t be it. Was that it? He just, agreed? Maybe he didn’t understand what she meant, gods know she made herself super clear.

“So, you’d be okay, with, biting me?” She asked slowly, raising an eyebrow. That was more straightforward, for sure.

“Been talkin’ with the boys. Said you should ask. Seemed nicer.” He took a long drag from his cigarette, glancing into the sky. “Ain't no big deal.”

Amanda wasn’t sure if she wanted to excited or confused.

“Wait, you’ve been talking about it? Since, when?” She had only been thinking about it everyday for a year, there’s no way they had also been thinking the same thing.

That would be… so much wasted time she could have been having a crazy good time.

“Wendimoor.” He leaned his head back, rolling his shoulders. “Mighty long.”

“No shit. That’s– I mean, that is quite a while. Why, why didn’t you just, like, ask me?” Amanda was trying to contain her, excitement, it was definitely excitement. And it was threatening to bubble over into a full on giggle-fit.

Martin cracked a grin.

“Gotta let you ask first, Drummer. No pressurin’ you into stuff. That's the rule.”

“And I love the rule, I do, but dude! That’s a year! I could have been hanging out with you all properly for the last twelve months and I just, wasn’t! That’s– I don’t even know. But, yes? Right? Yes?” She was smiling now, bouncing lightly on her toes.

Martin finally nodded.

“All the way, Drummer.”

“Yes! Fuck– I, awesome! Can we do it tonight or, that’s like really sudden, maybe wait, or, I don’t know how these things normally go.” It was taking all of her willpower not to race upstairs and tell Vogel. Martin sighed, pushing back to his feet and stretching.

“Gonna get sick. Just a few days, but it ain't fun. Vogel got real ill. Body has to, adjust. Healin’ after an hour. Wolf a few days.” He laughed. “Ain't too long.”

Amanda was too excited to think straight, but she had at least a few questions.

“Wait, really? That didn’t happen to like, Dirk and Todd. Though to be fair, Dirk died, and then Todd, you know, I’m not actually sure what happened to Todd. But like, okay, cool, so maybe, not tonight, but like, later. When we head back or something. Todd is gonna fucking die.” She laughed. “He’s gonna hate this so much.”

“Loup Garou.”

“What’s that? That’s French for werewolf right?” Amanda was still bouncing back and forth but slower, her adrenaline high slowly fading.

“Breeds. Couple of 'em, in this part of the world. Vogel there’s Loup Garou. I am. You'd be. Different breeds, different ways.”

“Wait really? That’s like, super cool. Does Todd know that, or Dirk? Wait, is that what Todd is, or is he something else?”

“Got my suspicions. Ain't too sure. Smells different.” He paused. “Vogel bit the Brit. Makes him that too. Other boys are Lycans.” Martin frowned at something that wasn't there, blinking back into the present. Amanda smiled.

“That is so, fucking cool dude. You should really write all this stuff down though, Todd is always asking me questions about it. Need to get a bestiary going or something.” She laughed lightly.

Martin frowned.

“Blackwing’s got a file.”

Amanda’s breath caught.

“Oh, that’s, that’s not what I meant. Like, not in a bad way, just like, a book, like a textbook or something not like. Not like Blackwing.” Of course Blackwing had a file.

“'S where I learned it. Most of what they got comes from time I spent. Ain't gotta write it. Got it in my head.”

“That’s a lot of information for just one person. If you ever want to share. I’m here. Ya know. I’m sorry I brought it up.” Well, there goes the buzz. She fidgeted slightly but tried for a smile.

Martin smiled back.

“Speakin’ of sharing. Boys want to know?”

Amanda smiled wider, the bounce returning to her step.

“Vogel is gonna flip.” She laughed.

“Think you're underestimatin’ Gripps.” He grinned up at the window. Amanda laughed and pushed Martin with her arm as she walked past.

“Oh no, Gripps will probably flip Vogel before throwing something out the window. It will be, spectacular!”

Martin stalked after her.

“Let’s see a show.”

* * *

**Cat Person? Eh, Maybe Not**

The shop wasn’t far from the apartment, no more than a quick walk. Todd had been there once, in search of some rose quartz that Dirk said ‘would fix everything that needing fixing’. They had not, in fact, one of them had almost gotten lodged in Todd’s leg. But that’s not what he had come to the store for this time. How hard could it be to find Wolfsbane?

Todd had been so focused on what he was thinking that he had failed to notice the other person on the inside of the door as he walked in. He recognized the suit though.

“Oh, excuse me, I– oh, it’s you.” Todd looked up, because the man was easily over six feet tall, making Todd almost have to crane his neck.

“Hello again. This is, serendipitous, twice in one day. It’s as if the universe is trying to tell me something.” Todd laughed, moving slightly around the man into the store.

“It’s funny you say that, that’s like, Dirk’s whole thing. Oh, um, the one who yelled at you. He’s a holistic detective, it means–”

“His convictions about the interconnectedness of all things. Yes, it’s why I made the joke. I’m Adrien by the way, Adrien Grayback. We didn’t really get proper introductions earlier.” Adrien held out his hand with a smile. Todd nodded for a second before shaking his hand.

“It's, nice to meet you. I think. Nice to meet someone who doesn't run away when I explain Dirk's, thing.” Todd gave a chance at a friendly smile.

“I don’t scare easily. What about you? You didn’t run away when he explained it. What makes you special?” Adrien released Todd’s hand and leaned backwards slightly. Todd shook his head, trying not to laugh to himself.

“Yeah, no uh, I tried. A few times. You wouldn't believe how stubborn both Dirk and the universe is. And Dirk's… he's great. Not worth running from once you get to know him. I'm not like, special? Or, whatever.” Adrien shrugged.

“Everyone has something that makes them unique. Tell me Todd, what’s yours?” He grinned slightly. Todd shrugged, opening his arms.

“I can like, I don't know, piss people off pretty easily? I once hit a cult member in the face and stole his coat. I don't, actually remember why. Not the best trait.” Todd sighed. “Uh, do you have something? Or…”

“I’ve been told I’m hard to deal with. That I have the ego of, well, a god. But I don’t care much for gods. I left them behind a while ago. So what brings you here this fine afternoon? A case?” Adrien gestured around the shop. Todd realized they were still standing in the door and moved slightly back to a reading area behind him, Adrien followed.

Todd frowned as he felt that, somewhere, Dirk had gotten a hunch. What could it possibly be this time?

“Well, besides gods, I needed some… uh. Shit. Wolfsbane, I think? My… friends, needed it.” Todd adjusted his collar as he felt Dirk become uncomfortable, the feeling feeding into Todd.

“Wolfsbane? You’re friends must be quite impressive. Aconite is poisonous to people. Unless they’re not people.” Adrien was still grinning at him. Todd chuckled nervously.

“Yeah well, you know. We're just, I mean, they're just. It's just, a thing. For a thing. Not important. People? Of course we're people. Everyone's a person.” Todd shifted his gaze as Adrien continued to stare at him; he was getting antsy.

He didn't think he liked Adrien.

“Oh relax Todd. I don’t care if you’re not people. Let me guess, you’ve got some Purebloods who want to get drunk? I prefer Nordic Blue Monkshood myself, but that stuff is a little, strong.”

“Uh…” Todd relented. “It's, more like I want them to get drunk. Mostly so that they'll be content with leaving us alone for the month. How did you, how do you like, know that?”

“Well, despite the obvious of Dirk mentioning it earlier and then running into you at a magic shop looking to buy Wolfsbane, it’s because, you could say, I’m a Pureblood as well. Technically speaking.” Adrien smiled, taking another step forward.

Todd gave a thumbs up, stepping back as Adrien came forward. This was quickly becoming an uncomfortable situation. If Adrien was a werewolf, wouldn't Todd have known?

“You know, I feel like I would have been able to, smell you? If you were. So. Maybe just, let's not get close too each other. I don't know you and you don't know me and, I have a boyfriend, so.” Todd put his hands in his pockets, trying to look casual. Adrien grinned.

“Oh, you’re bonded. Let me guess, that cute detective? Nice catch by the way. So what happened this morning, I’m assuming that was some sort of sire command gone wrong. And if you’re bonded then you know what happens if you don’t comply. So, we’ll start small. Tell me where you were last year, right around now.” Adrien took another step forward, smirking down at Todd. Todd opened his mouth, intending to tell Adrien exactly how creepy he was becoming.

“A museum. There was this mummy thing with Loki and- wait. Hold on. Why do you, or like, why do _I-”_ Todd's face fell.

“Knew it. I forgot how fun this was. It’s been far too long since I bit someone. You’re the first to survive, in, gosh, three hundred years? Something like that, I lose track. So tell me Todd, did you ever think you’d run into me again?” Todd gritted his teeth, glaring. He was overcome with an old memory of that dark basement, bleeding out on the floor as the wolf that attacked him raced away.

“Not really, we were just talking about that, actually.” Todd swore under his breath. “Shit. I need to call someone. Martin? Or Dirk? Or Farah? Farah. Definitely Farah. Farah can kick your ass for this.”

“The other one from the office? Has she ever taken down a god before? Because I wasn’t kidding earlier. Give me your phone, now. Can’t have you calling your little pack to come get you.” Adrien held out his hand.

“We found each other after traveling to another dimension so, you do you.” Todd resisted the urge to run at Adrien as he handed over his phone; it probably wouldn’t do much to help the situation.

Objectively, this sucked. He needed to send some sort of signal to Dirk. As long as he could resist what Adrien told him long enough to at least send some sort of emotional distress to him, then everything may still be okay.

He just needed to do it for a few seconds. Hadn't Martin said that the farther apart you were from the one who bit you, the easier it was to disobey?

Adrien pocketed the phone.

“That sounds like fun. I’ll have to have you tell me all about it. In the meantime, we need to grab some mistletoe. Do you know about that? Probably not, it’s a lesser known trick. Masks the scent leaving behind a nice pine smell. Your friends won’t be able to track you. Follow me.” Adrien turned and headed further into the shop towards the shelves. Todd trailed behind, his head reeling.

Either Adrien seriously underestimated the pack’s ability to find what they wanted, or Todd was _overestimating_ them. Hopefully, it was the former. Todd had seen them when they wanted something, and little could stop them.

This felt different, though.

“Tell me, who makes up your pack? You’re clearly not the leader, who is?” Adrien snagged a bottle off one of the shelves and passed it between his hands as he looked at Todd. Todd crossed his arms.

“That's a long list. You want that alphabetically?” Todd's throat burned as he fought the urge to name every single one of his friends.

“Don’t be smart with me. Just tell me what I want to know. Starting with the alpha. Name, now.”

Todd gasped as he gave into the burning making its way into his mouth.

“Martin.”

“Martin what? Is that his first name, his last name? Or are you not high enough up to know that sort of thing?” Adrien snorted lightly as he sprayed Todd in the face with the bottle he was holding. Todd coughed.

“How would I know? He's more cryptic than Thor. And that guy's cryptic as hell.”

“Oh yes, Thor. He’s always been a bit, annoying. But that’s family for you. Do you have any family? Siblings?” Adrien asked spraying Todd again in the face before placing the bottle back on the shelf.

“I have a cat. Somewhere. That counts.”

One of two things would happen if Adrien found out about Amanda. He would either hurt her, or Amanda would kick his ass before he even got the chance. Either way, Todd wasn't in the mood to drag her into this. Not by name, anyway.

“Wait, family?”

“Yes, uncle, terribly annoying. When you say cat, do you mean a real cat or a nagual? Because that would be an impressive combination. A wolf and a jaguar.” Adrien laughed to himself, as he grabbed a few random vials from the shelves. This time, it was Todd's turn to snort. Adrien paused, turning.

“Not that kind of cat. She's um, into fishing.” Todd brought his hand to his mouth to stop himself from laughing. The shark cat versus Adrien; that was something he was longing to see.

“So you have a not cat, and more than likely an actual real sibling but I’ll let that slide. How many wolves in your pack? Including you.” Adrien continued down the aisle, grabbing a knife along the way.

“Good question. Did you know I hate you?” Todd was quickly starting to figure out that this, along with just about everything else in the word, had loopholes. As long as Adrien didn't tell him what to do.

Adrien raised his eyebrow.

“That sounded distinctly not like a number. Tell me how many wolves. Or I will follow your scent back home and count myself.” Adrien glared down at Todd, holding the knife near his throat.

Todd swallowed.

“Six.”

“See, that wasn’t so hard. And I didn’t have to prove a point. So six wolves, at least one human. How many other members?” Adrien moved the knife back, letting it rest on his shoulder. Todd sighed; this was going to be more complicated than he thought.

“Five. Or six. I think. Something like that.”

“That’s quite the pack. Do any of the non-wolves have powers that I should know about?” Adrien went back to grinning, Todd realizing that his canines looked overly sharp.

“Farah is secretly James Bond.” Todd paused. He couldn't include Amanda. “And uh, there's Bart. Bart is just Bart. They're a thing. They can also kick your ass, but in a, different way.”

“Are they a god? Cause, again, that’s kind of needed if you want to do anything of the sort to me. Or perhaps they’re like your little bonded. Does the universe actually talk to him?” Adrien smiled lightly.

“If the universe tried actually talking to him, Dirk would get in at least five fights with it. And Bart… depends. On your, definition of a god. A god of death, maybe.” Todd hid a smile; if anyone could hurt Adrien, it was either Bart or Farah. Ever since Bart had become part of the pack, Bart had gotten weird about any of them getting kidnapped.

It was a rather specific thing to be weird about, given the circumstances.

Adrien laughed, throwing his head back and then looking down at Todd.

“Funny you should mention death gods. You’ll be meeting one, or well, maybe you won’t depending on how the sacrifice goes. Tell me Todd, have you ever heard of the Goddess Hel?”

“Thor mentioned her. He said she's, kind of an ass.” Todd watched Adrien pull yet another thing off of the shelf to look at the label. He was taking his time, enjoying this. “You know, that sacrifice shit is like, the least alarming thing I've ever been told on a case. Which puts, a lot of my life in perspective.”

“Hel is, well, there’s nothing like the hate you can feel for a sibling. But really? That’s the least alarming? You lead a very interesting life, for a mortal, or well, semi-mortal. You probably won’t age a ton, just heads up.” Adrien continued towards the front of the store with his haul and Todd trailing behind.

“Cool? I guess? Why not?”

Adrien deposited his items on the counter and looked back at Todd.

“Well, I’m a god, and while you’re not technically a demigod, or well, not at all, you still were bitten by a god, you’ll live slightly longer than average. Maybe, a few hundred years. Longer than most wolves but not as long as gods. It will be very sad for you when your bonded dies though. Has that been explained to you yet?” Adrien tilted his head slightly, smiling. Todd dissolved into a coughing fit, somewhere between an actual cough and laughter. Usually, the memory of Dirk dying only made him sad, but the context in which it was being brought up was worryingly hysterical. Maybe he was losing it.

“Uh, yeah, uh, Martin may have, it was, mentioned, once.” Todd gasped for breath. Adrien raised his eyebrow.

“That sounds like a fun story. You can tell me about it later. Jason! Come on! I don’t want to stand and wait all day.” Adrien turned back towards the counter, yelling towards a backdoor.

Todd sank down to the floor, closing his eyes. He needed Dirk. The last and only time he had ever really pushed their Bond past what looked like it's limits was when Dirk was kidnapped by Blackwing, when Todd had accidentally fallen into being able to see what Dirk was witnessing. It had been an awful feeling, and it was even worse to remember, but Todd needed to figure out how to do it again.

He needed to get Dirk to realize something was wrong.

Todd sat on the ground, his head in his arms, and pulled up the most panic stricken, desperate emotion he could find before shoving it at Dirk. He tried to reach out a hand, metaphorically, for him. He needed him to hear him.

For a moment, Todd thought he heard his name. And then, he felt Dirk dissolve into what felt like dread.

He'd heard him.

“Why are you on the floor? Did I bite a broken person?” Adrien asked from over Todd’s head. Todd shook his head, mostly to himself.

“Dirk,” Todd whispered. Dirk could hear him. He could do something about this. “The shop. That asshole client. He's got me, man. He's my-”

“Stop!”

“There he is yelling. His name is Adrien. He's Hel’s brother, he's got some sort of sacrifice. You've got to-” Todd's throat burned. Adrien had told him to stop, but he wasn't listening. “Get everyone out of there and come get- ah shit!” Todd grabbed his throat. Adrien dragged him to his feet and pushed him up against a support beam.

“If you try that again, I will kill you, and all of your friends. And I will take your little bonded and use him for my sacrifice. Am I clear?”

Todd gritted his teeth, unanswering.

“You will not try to contact your friends again. You will do as I say, and you will speak when spoken to. Am. I. Clear?” Adrien growled out the last words, baring his teeth. Todd laughed, a bitter sound making its way out of his throat. Had Dirk felt that?

“You're as clear as the universe on a bad day.”

“Well then it’s a good thing that the universe won’t make it to the summer solstice, isn’t it?” Adrien dropped him as, who Todd could only assume was, Jason appeared from the door. Todd exhaled harshly, falling onto the ground.

“I'm sure Dirk will love that.” Todd shivered to himself as he looked at Adrien and Jason, who were exchanging an alarming amount of what looked like magical ingredients.

He hated witches. And werewolves. And most certainly, he hated Norse gods.

Adrien grabbed the bag Jason handed him and smiled.

“If anyone comes to shop looking for him, call at once. The others will be coming in tomorrow and everything will be good to go in a day or two. Is everything ready on the other end?” Jason nodded, casting a glance at Todd.

“Ready to go when you are.” Jason said.

“Fantastic. Todd, follow me.” Adrien turned and headed towards the front of the store. Todd pushed himself to his feet to follow Adrien, scowling after him. Why was it that every time someone went out to buy something, they got kidnapped? Todd was beginning to see a pattern develop. Adrien led him to a rather nice sports car, not unlike the one Dirk had shown up with after breaking into his apartment the first time. Adrien slid into the driver’s seat and smiled over at Todd, his too sharp canines visible.

“So tell me about this dimension hopping you did. I personally have only ever traveled along the Yggdrasil but something tells me it wasn’t like that.” Adrien threw the car into drive and tore onto the road.

“It's uh, a weird story. With, really cryptic snails and old kids and, whatever. You want to know this why?” Todd slumped into the seat. Adrien was driving fast, sure, but it was nothing compared to being in the Rowdy van or driving with Dirk.

“Because I’m bored, you have to do what I say, and I want to know if I need to add more than nine realms to the list of places that need conquering. So, tell me about this other dimension.”

“I don't know. It's full of magic creatures and, like, that one kid. Who's like the god of all gods there. A lot of pink.” Todd frowned, looking out the window.

“Sounds like my kind of place. I do love killing gods. No other feeling like it. Start at the beginning.” Todd sighed and glared over.

“So it all started with this government agency called Blackwing.” This was going to be a long drive.

* * *

**I Just Wanted Some Alcohol**

Dirk hummed as he threw Mona into the air, catching her momentarily before throwing her up again. They did this sometimes, and often enjoyed it, but there usually weren't so many people around. Mona loved to be thrown into the air, but she didn't like to be things that could fly. That would involve her being something other than an inanimate object for the most part. Instead, Dirk and Mona would play a one sided game of catch.

He hoped Todd would get back soon. Then he could join in as well.

He looked at the group littering his- no, Todd's apartment, and frowned. He could have asked someone to help him amuse Mona, like Vogel or Amanda, but both of them got rather violent during any kind of game. They were currently messing around with Beast and Cross on the floor, having dumped out the box of squeaky toys that Todd kept in the house. It was going to be a nightmare to clean up tomorrow.

Glancing around the room some more, Dirk made eye contact with Martin, who was having a conversation with Farah. Farah was perhaps the only one Dirk had ever seen Martin not be cryptic with; she was a true miracle, or at least Dirk thought so. She shrugged, turning his head back up to catch Mona as she fell towards him.

“Ah!”

Dirk stumbled backwards as he leaned to catch Mona, crashing into the refrigerator with a loud bang. He frowned up at Mona, who had changed into her favorite human form to ask him if he was alright. The rest of apartment lowered it volume by a considerable amount as Mona stared at him.

“Are you okay, Dirk?”

“Yes, Mona. I'm, quite alright. I didn't really hurt anything.” Dirk gave a thumbs up as Mona grabbed his arms, pulling him up.

“Are you sure? Because I can become something to help.” He shook his head.

“No need. Promise.”

Mona shrugged, and in what was literally the blink of an eye, Dirk was holding a can opener instead of Mona's hand. He raised his eyebrows as he examined it.

“Well, that's nice. I like it, Mona.”

Dirk placed the can opener, Mona, on the counter. After setting her safe out of harm's way, he leaned forward on it to get a better look at everyone. Vogel waved at him from where he was sitting, and Dirk smiled at him as he waved back. Dirk glanced back down at Mona and smiled.

Pineapples.

He turned to grab a can from the cupboard, only to realize they were out. He sighed, standing back against the counter, contemplating if he should text Todd to bring some back. Or perhaps he could pick up some eggs; they'd eaten all the ones they had in the last week. That, and they'd been stolen by Hades.

A normal week, he guessed.

Dirk frowned.

“Amanda?”

“Sup?” She called from the couch, he head bobbing backwards slightly.

“Is there, perhaps, something nerve-racking near that witch store?” Dirk felt off; like there was something behind his shoulder. He was sure it was nothing. Maybe. There was something in the back of his mind, calling out to him.

_Hunch._

It was probably nothing.

“No. Not that I know of. Why?” Amanda turned and looked at him, frowning.

“Not sure. Probably nothing important.” He shook his head, turning to open the fridge. “Nevermind.” It was nothing. This was their break day; nothing important ever happened on break days. Not after the full moon.

“Are you sure? Cause like, we can go do a thing if you want. It’s not a big deal. The boys are always willing to smash shit.” Amanda said glancing around the room. The others whooped in chorus and Vogel hopped up next to Amanda.

“Always Boss! Whatcha got Dirk?!”

“Nothing of importance, Vogel. I promise.” A grin spread on Dirk's face as he searched the mostly empty fridge. Something in his hand, he turned to face the younger Rowdy. “Would you like a drink?”

“Sure thing! Is it good?!” Vogel jumped forward, a smile on his face. Amanda rolled her eyes and sat back down on the couch.

“For my amusement, yes. Not for Martin.” Dirk was still mad at him. He held out one of the energy drinks in his hand, still cold. “It tastes, wonderful.” This. This was the perfect way to get back at Martin.

“Dirk, energy drinks don’t actually work on Vogel.” Amanda laughed as Vogel snatched the bottle.

“Maybe. But we had our fridge charmed ages ago. Gods are very good at paying back gifts. The only thing it won't work on is alcohol.” Dirk gave a thumbs up to Amanda.

“What does that mean? Vogel wait that’s– that’s super Dirk. Did you just give him some sort of potion?” Amanda was frowning as she watched Vogel down the drink. Dirk rolled his eyes.

“Of course not Amanda. I would never. The fridge is simply charmed to heighten the effects of most anything put inside of it. Including energy drinks. Even Vogel can drink them normally.” Dirk glanced at Martin. “I am very angry at Martin.”

“Yeah, but it’s not Martin’s apartment that’s going to get wrecked now is it?” Amanda laughed, glancing over at him. Martin snorted from where he was leaning against the wall.

“No, but I have a hunch we should. So we are. Besides, it was going to get messed up anyway with you lot.” Dirk frowned as the jumpiness increased, and he was now entirely certain that it was coming from Todd. Dirk's speech faltered, squinting to try and figure out what was happening.

Surely, the universe wouldn't pull something today.

“Yeah, but you would have still had a couch and a TV if you hadn’t given him an energy drink laced with magic. I’m just saying, you’re going to have to replace, well, probably everything.” Amanda laughed as she glanced over. “Hey, are you okay?”

“That is a, valid question. I'd love to answer it.” Dirk took a deep breath. “Is it hot in here? I think it is. Very crowded. Why are there so many people?”

Something was off.

“Dirk? You look a little pale. Do you, need something? Water? A cookie? A hospital?” Amanda had moved closer and was frowning at him. Dirk shook his head.

“I'm, quite alright. I- shit!” A pounding suddenly made itself known in Dirk's head, like a silent scream echoing around. Something bad. There was something very bad coming.

What was happening?

Dirk stumbled back from the force of the headache, blinking in momentary panic.

“Shit! Dirk, hey just– what’s wrong? Is it Todd?” Amanda followed Dirk and glanced over as Martin appeared at her side. Dirk's breathing was audible as he tried to regulate it. It was as if a chorus of voices had exploded in his head, warning him.

This wasn't a hunch.

There was something bad coming for Todd.

“Brit, hey, gotta breathe. What’s happenin’?” Martin grabbed onto Dirk’s arm to try to keep him up.

“Bad. There is, something, very bad, coming. For Todd. There's something, oh, but what?! Come on!” Dirk hit the wall, screaming in frustration as the voices yelled at him. It was making his head ache.

It was also making his chest fill up with an unprecedented amount of dread.

“Okay. Well, we can go. We can help, right? Do you know what it is?” Amanda was glancing quickly between Martin and Dirk. She could vaguely hear Farah in the background trying to call Todd.

Dirk's eyes glazed over as a familiar presence engulfed him, filling his ears with something that wasn't in the room.

Todd.

_“Dirk.”_

“Todd.” Dirk whispered, breathless.

“Dirk? What’s happening?” Amanda tried again. Martin was still holding tight to Dirk’s arm and he was frowning.

_“The shop. That asshole client. He's got me, man. He's got-”_

_“Stop it!”_

Dirk's knees fell out under him as another, more forceful voice joined Todd's. It sent something terrifying up his spine, and he fell into Martin.

“Client.” He mumbled under his breath. This had never happened before. Nothing like this.

“What client?” Farah had rushed over when Dirk fell, thoughts of trying to call Todd forgotten. Dirk wasn't listening, instead paying attention to Todd's voice.

This was impossible. This couldn't be done, not to this scale.

Unless Martin hadn't told them about it.

_“There he is yelling. His name is Adrien. He's Hel's brother, he's got some sort of sacrifice. You've got to-”_

Todd's voice was cut off suddenly, and Dirk gasped as he was dragged back into reality, shaking. Martin’s grip tightened on his arm.

“Brit? Dirk! What happened?” Martin asked.

“Someone's, got Todd. Adrien? I don't know who that-” Dirk was cut off as a sharp pain blossomed in the back of his head. “Ow!” Dirk brought his hand up to his head quickly, pushing Amanda back slightly.

“Are you– Is he hurt?” Amanda asked, panic accenting her voice as she reached forward, trying to look at Dirk’s head.

“That _would_ be the assumption!” Dirk shook out his hands. “Why does this has to happen today? We have so many other days to choose from! Wonderful, great, not after the full moon, days!”

Amanda frowned and moved forward only to stop. Her eyes had clouded over.

“Martin.” Was all she managed before she fell forward into Dirk. Dirk yelped, barely able to catch her before managing to lower her onto the ground. The other Rowdies, hanging back, jumped forward to see if she was alright.

“Boss!?”

“Drummer girl?”

“Drummer's asleep!”

“Amanda?” Farah pushed Martin back, feeling for a pulse at her neck. “Okay. Dirk, whatever happened to Todd, he’s still alive right?”

Dirk nodded, distress pulling at his chest.

“Okay, I’m really sorry, but Amanda’s priority. Her heart rate is dangerously fast. We need to get her to a hospital.” Farah was glancing down at her watch, counting silently as she timed Amanda’s heartbeats.

“Hospital?” Mona leaned down from behind Dirk, the watch falling off his wrist and disappearing as she rose to look at Amanda. “Is someone hurt? Can I help?”

“Is it like last time?” Cross asked. Everyone glanced up sharply, making him jump. “Like, with Brit and Vogel. She was screamin’ more tho.” Farah frowned.

“Last time? Like, when she talked to the universe?”

“The hair rowdy has a point.” Mona stood up straight. “Maybe she is. Maybe we should all just relax.” She smiled. Farah took a breath and looked down at Amanda.

“It’s just, if her heart keeps beating like this, she’s–”

Amanda gasped and sat up, knocking right into Farah’s nose. Startled, Mona disappeared again. She never liked sudden things like that. The others stumbled back as well as Amanda gasped for air.

“Drummer! Breathe, now. Just. Breathe.” Martin knelt down, and placed his hand on her back as she continued to gasp for air.

“Idiot– Universe– Ragnarok– problem!”

She looked around; where was Dirk?

“Dirk?” Amanda gasped, she could feel her heart slowing. Dirk moved over.

“Amanda, are you alright, you–”

“Shut up. Todd, he’s been taken by a god. Fenrir. He wants to start Ragnarok. That’s that, Norse shit, right? You know Thor? Do, you know what that means?” Amanda still felt dizzy and she thought if she stood too quickly she’d faint again.

“Dirk might. He dated Loki once.” Farah reached out, grabbing her shoulder to keep her from swaying. “Dirk?”

“Not now, Farah.” Dirk deadpanned, glancing over. “Ragnarok? Are you sure?”

Amanda nodded, her heart finally beating out a normal rhythm. Dirk frowned, standing slowly.

“I, excuse me. I need to go, try to make a call. I’ll, be right back.” Dirk hurried out of the apartment before the others could say anything. Amanda took a deep breath and pushed herself up.

“Okay, well. He’s doing that. But, that guy, the Friedkin guy, he was like, all glowy.” Amanda gestured with her hands, waving them around her.

“Hugo Friedkin?” Martin frowned. “The one with a gun to your head? Blackwing?”

“Yeah, he’s like, still there. I don’t even know, but–” There was a loud popping sound and a crash from behind them. Farah drew her gun as she spun and Amanda ducked slightly. She glanced over Martin’s shoulder and frowned.

“Well, that’s different.”

Laying on the floor, was Hugo Friedkin.


	2. So, Pocket Dimensions Seem Fun, Not Really

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter gets... Intense. We hope you like Adrien, because he sure as hell terrifies us. Believe it or not, he started out as a normal villain before we fully developed his character. Not sure what happened there. Pray for Todd. -Sam  
> Seriously, we're not kidding. A lot of shit goes down in this part. Like, so much. I'm still not fully recovered. But hope you like it! -Sarah

**The Universe Is A Bad Significant Other**

Friedkin was lying on the floor, staring up at the web of the universe above him. It was impossible to tell how long he had been doing so. It could have been hours, days even, but it also could have been only a few seconds. Time just didn't exist here. He let out a heavy, dramatic sigh.

This was boring.

“Hey? Like, universe thing? Are you still around? Me?” Friedkin looked around at the strings; they seemed both teeming with life and devoid of it at the same time. When nothing happened, he sighed again.

“You know, it's like, rude, to ignore me. I'm still stuck here.”

The universe hummed, annoyingly around him. Perhaps it was annoyed at him and not just an annoying sound. Friedkin pointed up, exclaiming in victory.

“See! You are there! Sort of. I, don't really know.” He dropped his hand, frowning as he saw one of the strings to the right get twisted up in a larger, bright red string. All of the other ones were blue, and the red one stood out like a sore thumb as it wrapped around the smaller one.

“What's that?”

The universe seemed to notice the action and suddenly sparked, encouraging Friedkin to his feet as a distinct air of something not good filled the void. Everything seemed to scream ‘bad, very not good.’

“That, seems… bad? I should look at it, maybe?” He looked up at the space around him, hopeful.

He could have sworn he heard a groan as a bright window opened in front of him.

“A window! Score! This place is so-” Friedkin paused as he saw Todd being pushed up against the wall by someone he didn't recognize. When the other man came into full view, Friedkin cringed. Everything about him looked and felt wrong.

“That's maybe not a good thing. Is that a good thing? Hm.”

_Danger!_

“Holy, what the-” Friedkin put his hands up. “Dude, since when can you talk? What the- ugh. What's that guy doing?” He approached the window again, watching the way Todd seemed to look angrier than Friedkin had ever seen him. Even as he'd watched through a window as Todd went to kill his way through Blackwing, he hadn't looked this choked up and enraged.

_Fenrir. Danger!_

“That's a weird name. His mom was probably… not cool. Is he psychic?” The universe groaned around him, pulling up a second window. An image from what looked like an old book showed a huge wolf with glowing eyes.

_Danger! Ragnarok._

“Oh. Okay. So like, a werewolf. But, an, evil werewolf. Rana- what? You're weird.” Hugo frowned at the second window; it made something in his chest stir in an uneasy way.

_Help! We– have to help! Danger!_

“Well I, guess like. Maybe that Amanda one? She's pretty cool. We could call her in but, like, she'd punch me again man.” Hugo groaned, his voice turning into a whine near the end. He didn't want to get hit again.

Not again.

The universe hummed loudly around him, sending small sparks dancing over head.

_I will deal with Amanda. Hurry!_

He whined out loud.

“Do I seriously have to call her? Ugh. This sucks.” Friedkin reached up for Amanda's string, which always seemed to be floating within arm's length. It was wrapped up in four other, thinner strings, but the end was long and frayed. He grabbed it, examining the end.

“I uh… I gotta like, do something with this. One of those, cool string things. Like- oh!” Friedkin pulled on it, and he fell to the ground as sharp shocks came out of the end and attacked him. Rubbing his head, he watched the string wriggle around for a moment before going back to its position.

“I guess I did it? Sort of? That like, hurt. A lot.”

The universe whined at him and moved near the string, brightening it as the humming increased.

_I’ll do it, just, stay there._

“Fine. Whatever I'm like, that was still cool. I'm still cool.” Friedkin grumbled to himself as he crossed his arms, watching the way the windows shifted their gaze onto Amanda.

This was going to suck.

Friedkin yelped as he watched the string brighten even more, and quite out of nowhere, Amanda had fallen out from under it. She groaned.

“What the-” She stopped as she laid eyes on Friedkin, who waved nervously.

“Hey.”

“ _You.”_ Amanda launched herself forward at him. But was pulled back by a sharp shock inside her mind.

_Stop! Danger! Help!_

Amanda paused, looking around for the voice. She opened her mouth, but for a second, nothing came out.

“Uh, is that like. Is that-”

“I think it's… the, universe? Or whatever. It's kind of annoying. Like I'm out here laying down right, and all of a sudden it's telling about blah blah danger and blah blah Fenrir.” Friedkin rolled his eyes, the movement directed more at the universe than Amanda. Amanda put her hands up.

“Yeah, no, what?”

“Like, the universe? It talks sometimes.”

“ _No._ It doesn't _._ ”

Friedverse shrugged, screwing up his face as he looked up into the fabric of reality. Amanda put her hands to her head, turning to face the opposite direction. This was literally insane, and impossible, and downright anxiety inducing.

Breathe. She just needed to breath.

She swiveled back around as the voice picked up again, this time with more urgency.

_Something bad. There...danger. Bad. Fenrir. He has Todd. Ragnarok._

“What is happening?!” Amanda whispered to herself, nearly pulling her hair out. This was fine, this was chill, but she needed to collect herself.

She took a deep breath. Focus.

“Is Todd kidnapped or something? Ragnarok? Like the legend… the end of, yeah no that sounds not cool. Um, okay, weirdness of talking to the universe aside which I'm _also_ going to ignore, what am I supposed to do about that?” Amanda frowned; this was one of the strangest moments she had spent in this place. The universe couldn't just talk. Moreover, it couldn't talk to her, of all people. Maybe Dirk.

_Stop Fenrir. Todd will die. We– we have to stop him._

“Right. Todd dying. That is, amazingly bad.” Amanda looked around the empty space. “Could we, go get him? But if he's like, Fenrir or whatever, we wouldn't be able to do it with just us.”

Amanda glared at Friedkin, who was still sitting on the ground.

“You're lucky I've been drinking.” She grumbled. Hugo shrugged, and she sighed again.

This was so not chill.

“Okay, so, stopping my idiot brother from dying. Because apparently the universe can talk now. Cool. Any ideas, oh mystical force? Any Yoda ideology to lay on me?”

_I will help. We, will help. Hugo, stand up._

“What? Why- ow!” Hugo grabbed his head as a jolt ran through it, and he jumped to his feet. “Not like, cool man!”

_Amanda, go ahead. We will follow._

“Am I supposed to do a swan dive through the floor? This is the weirdest- oh.” Amanda looked down at her hands, which had become transparent. “You're like, less helpful than Todd. And way more cryptic.”

Amanda looked up at Friedkin, who had been surrounded by pale blue strings. He looked like he was about to panic as he made eye contact with Amanda, who gave him a thumbs up.

“Have fun with your weird date, dude. Sounds like it's going awful.”

Before Amanda faded away completely, the strings blocked off Friedkin's vision completely. He glanced up.

“Uh. What is this? It's like, the, opposite of fun.”

_Sorry Hugo. This is going to hurt. A lot._

“Hold on, do I get a say in-” Hugo stopped talking as one of the strings shot out from the vortex surrounding him and wrapped itself around his neck. He sputtered as he fell to the ground, trying to pull it off.

“Hey!”

More strings shot out, and soon enough, Friedkin could barely breathe. He registered, rather dimly, that the strings were sharp. It felt like they were trying to dig into his skin. Friedkin tried to take a breath as the pain raced through his body, but gasped, choking on the thread wrapped around his throat.

_Don’t panic._

And then everything went dark.

* * *

**Dumbass Or Genius? Probably The One You're Thinking Of**

Friedkin took a deep breath as he sat up. The pain from a moment before had vanished and was replaced by a different sensation. Something filling his lungs. Was that air? His head felt weird, like it was buzzing with energy. Blinking, it took him a few moments to register a confused looking man with white hair, who seemed to have been knocked to the ground by something.

“Uh, what? Ow.” Friedkin grabbed at his head. The buzzing had only intensified when he spoke. “Tell me about it. Pain is awful.”

“Uh. Friedkin?”

Hugo looked up to his right to see Amanda, who was looking like she'd seen a ghost. Friedkin, just barely able to register that it was in fact her, waved slightly.

“Hey. Does anyone hear that buzzing? That's just me, be quiet Friedkin.” Amanda's eyes widened.

“Did you just, talk to yourself, dude?”

“What? Why would I do that? He didn't, Amanda Brotzman, it's just me. His head was empty enough for me to take hold. Woah, that's rude. Why would I say that?” Friedkin frowned as a shock went through his head, and all at once, he was able to process everything in the room without any trouble.

Oh. Shit.

The oldest member of Project Incubus, Martin, was currently sat on the ground, looking at him rather angrily. Friedkin laughed nervously as he scrambled to his feet.

“We should move, over there.” Hugo sighed. “I don't even know where that is. Over by the corner, Hugo, before Martin hits you.”

“Dude, you are definitely talking to yourself.”

Martin surged forward, only to end up falling over the couch. Friedkin glanced around, confused as to what just happened. The room had shifted.

“No, we shifted. I moved us. We’re here to help. Can someone please tell me why I'm saying things that I'm not saying?” Friedkin gestured wildly as he looked around, now on the other side of the room. Gripps was holding onto Martin, who was rubbing his head as he stood up. Everyone was staring at him, and he noticed that one of them off to the side had her gun out.

That didn't seem very friendly.

“This is such a weird day. Tell me about it. We’re here to help. There is an emergency. Did Amanda tell you?” The woman with the gun nodded, and Hugo got the distinct feeling that he'd seen her before. She didn't lower her gun, but she replied to him slowly.

“Amanda, said something about Ragnarok. And Todd.”

“Correct. Todd is about to be sacrificed to bring someone back to life. I- We’re not sure who. This is like, super freaking me out right now. I don't know what's happening. Deep breath, and relax, let me do the talking.” Friedkin frowned as he continued to talk, whining.

“Todd?”

Everyone turned to the doorway, where a man who was unmistakably Dirk Gently was standing. He looked somewhere between panic and sadness and anger, and he was standing awkwardly in the doorway.

“What do you mean, sacrificed? Why are you in Mr. Friedkin? Who _are_ -” Dirk stopped. “Why, do your, words feel familiar? Does anyone else hear that?”

Friedkin nodded.

“Hello Dirk. It’s interesting to talk to you. Finally. Look, we don’t have a lot of time–” Friedkin, or whatever was in him, stopped talking as Dirk suddenly bounded forward, punching him in his face. The Rowdies whooped as Friedkin fell to the ground, Dirk scowling down at him.

“You. _You?!_ Ignoring the fact that I already hate Friedkin, and that this is literally impossible, what in the hell do you have any business being here?”

“Okay, getting punched is awful. Good to know. We’re here to help. Why do I have to get punched because of you?!” Dirk gave what wasn't quite a laugh, and even Vogel stopped jittering as he watched Dirk take a breath.

“Because of me? If you are what I think you are, and I'm sure you are because I can feel the way your words taste in the air, which by the way, is awful, then I am most _certainly_ not at fault here.” Dirk tried to take another breath to steady himself, but failed.

“He wasn’t talking to you. I wasn’t talking to you! Why?! Because it was you or Amanda, and she’s busy. But why the hitting? I don’t think he likes me very much, or you for that matter.” Dirk laughed, covering his mouth with his hands.

“No, I would say I don’t like either of you. You!” He pointed to Friedkin, anger still radiating off of him. “You kept me in Blackwing for months! Very stupidly! And you! You, pulling me around all the time from place to place to place, always in _constant_ danger. And Todd! You keep wrapping him up in all of this! Do you know how rude that is? I-”

“Dude, who even are you talking to?”

Amanda had stepped forward, her hands outstretched in front of her to try and diffuse Dirk's anger. Dirk scoffed. Looking back at Friedkin.

“Us. We– I– You– stop it! It is regrettable all that has happened to you Dirk. I don’t really– I said stop it. But we don’t have time for this. Todd is in danger. Real, proper danger. From Friends. I swear to god, shut up! Fenrir, not friends you idiot.”

“What is happening!?”

Dirk sighed, turning to Amanda.

“Amanda, you said the universe was talking to you two in that place, yes?” She nodded. “And you also said that it wanted to help, at which point you disappeared and Friedkin was surrounded in a blue cocoon or something like that.”

“Uh, yeah. Sort of-”

“Well, using my self proclaimed detective skills, and the fact that half the words Mr. Friedkin is speaking resonates in the air in an incredibly similar way to my hunches, I would like to put forth the theory that Friedkin is now sharing a body with the universe. Who I personally have waited to hit for a very long time. Any questions?”

“Several.”

“Mr. Friedkin, please feel free to discredit me. It's what you're good at.” Dirk exhaled, taking a step away from the two and in the direction of Farah and Vogel.

“I think he might hate you more than me. Is that what’s going on?! Oh, Hugo.” Friedkin looked both annoyed and confused.

“So, tell me. Was I right, or am I just a poor little psychic puppet being pulled on your strings?” Farah frowned, lowering her gun. Dirk rarely used those words, and with the way he was scowling, he looked a mix between upset and something being even anger.

Todd disappearing probably wasn't helping the situation.

“That feels like a trick question. Because it is a trick question. But like, do we answer it? There is no right way to answer it, it’s a trick question! Well sorry for just wanting to help. Stop talking!” Dirk snapped, drawing Friedkin's attention back to him.

“So, I'll assume I was right, then. Good for me. One thing I haven't gotten wrong.” Dirk resisted the urge to roll his eyes; he felt extraordinarily off balance, like he couldn't quite get a grip on who he was supposed to be.

He needed to find Todd. He needed to fix this.

“Right. Anyway. Todd. Universe. Ragnarok. Tell us about that, before I let Martin throw you out of a window.” The Rowdies grunted in agreement.

“Well, I don’t– Not you. Be quiet. Fenrir has taken Todd. He’s going to use him to gain access to something, I’m not sure what. But he’s going to use whatever it is to find his siblings, and kick start the end of the world. If he does this, I won’t be able to stop him, at that point, he’ll be a god and gods are, tricky. You need to stop him before this happens. I mean, I assume you would prefer Todd not to be dead, correct? Oh, that wasn’t smart.”

“Excuse me?” Dirk stared at Friedkin and the universe, his mouth agape as he made eye contact with them. “Are you- are you _questioning_ how much I want my soulmate not dead? Are you serious? You can't be that daft, considering you drag me into insane circumstances all hours of the day.”

“If we complete this current course of action, whether or not Todd Brotzman lives is inconsequential, as long as he does not die during the sacrifice. That was definitely not the right thing to say!”

“You are extraordinarily rude. Martin?” Martin grinned as Dirk flashed a glance towards him, and he stepped forward. Friedkin yelped, falling backwards.

“Woah woah woah! Hey! Let's not do the, weird vampire Incubus thing man! We're all good here! Everything's like, chill! Someone help. Just– move!” Friedkin was suddenly on the other side of the room again, near the door. He watched as everyone spun to look at him.

“Can we, just not hit me for the dumb crap the universe says? What I said was accurate. Now _you_ need to shut up!”

“Ain't said nothin’ about hittin’.” Martin suppressed an even wider smile as Friedkin glanced at him nervously. “Bet you and the universe would taste mighty strange all combined like that. Unless you want to stop upsetting my pack members.”

“I’m terribly sorry that Di– nope! That’s not an apology! Just, my turn. Look, I’m really sorry that the universe is like, a dick or whatever. But like, this whole, Rampage – Ragnarok – thing seems, not great, so maybe, we just, focus on that? And don't, eat me, maybe?” Friedkin held up his hands and tried for a smile. Martin laughed, standing up straight.

“If you say so. But we're not done later on, Friedkin.” Friedkin groaned.

“Right. This is fine. It's chill.”

“Mr. Friedkin, while I appreciate-”

The sound of someone screaming came from outside, and for a moment, everyone tensed. Farah raised her gun at the door, until Amanda's phone started buzzing. Looking at the screen, she sighed.

“It's Ethan. Him and Bart are back.”

“Bart? Is that the one that shapeshifts or– You don’t remember? You created them! There’s forty-two of them! That’s just bad, I don’t know, parenting? Mona's the shapeshifter. The one with the, voice or, whatever.” Friedkin let out an odd sounding sigh as he crossed his arms. A toy robot, having been moved back to the apartment, buzzed in what sounded like agreement.

Friedkin pointed to it.

“See? Mona.” The sounds of heavy footsteps made its way to the door, and Friedkin leapt aside. “Is jumping out the window, like, still an option? Marzanna- uh, Bart like, kills people. And probably is mad at you and me because like, you're in me or whatever. And I'm not getting stabbed again. Oh, Bart. The anti-virus. Right, I remember now. Remember? Is that the right word? Yes.” Friedkin covered his mouth to keep from screaming as someone kicked the door open, and Bart, covered in blood, pulled Ethan into the room. Ethan gave a weary wave to everyone as his eyes fell on Friedkin. When he saw him, he nearly fell.

“Hey guys-”

“Friedkin?!”

Bart turned as Ethan interrupted them, frowning. Ethan was staring at Hugo, his mouth hung open.

“Not assistant. That can’t be his name. I don’t know his name. You’re terrible at being a person. You’ve gotten us nearly killed twice!”

“What is, what. Why is. Why is my old boss here?!” Ethan pointed to him wildly, making Bart narrow their eyes as they followed Ethan's gaze.

“'Dis guy makin’ you mad, Eth?”

“I–”

“How much longer do you all stand around before you do something? Time moves terribly slow when you go linearly. You want us to die, don’t you? Universe, could we maybe like, deal with Bart first?! This is so not cool! They are so going to kill us! No they won’t, I know everything, well, mostly everything, and I know that they won’t. How?! Because I say so. Right Bart?”

“Yous sound funny. Do’s I know you? You know ‘im, Ethan?” Bart frowned over at Ethan, who looked confused.

“Well I was going to say that that's my old boss, but I think we may have missed something important. Because he was uh, not very... He's not clever enough to talk like that.” Dirk laughed, and the other older Rowdies snickered.

“Do I really have to explain this again? Can you just, like, stop? For a minute? We don’t have a minute, Todd is set to die in two days! Just, learn basic communication. Oh, because you’re so good at that? Well you’ve got mean down.” Friedkin waved to Ethan, who was still gawking. “Hey. You're like, that guy. The guy with, the name. The annoying one.”

Ethan frowned.

“Uh, so like, there's this thing with this god and he kidnapped Todd and now he wants to like, start, uh…. Fenrir wants to start Ragnarok- ow!” Friedkin had slapped himself in the face, earning a chorus of laughter from all five of the Rowdies in the room. “Can you! Not! Let me talk! But you’re an idiot! And you’re a dick!”

“I. What. Ragnarok? Fenrir? Loki's son? What does he have to do with this? Is he connected to Todd's condition?” Ethan was reeling as he leaned in, processing the information. Friedkin’s face lit up, looking pleased.

“Whoa, wait, you like know this stuff?” Friedkin asked watching as Ethan nodded.

“Yeah, I love mythology. It’s like, a hobby. But, are you saying that’s all like, real?”

“Our last case contained not one, but _five_ Greek gods. Keep up.” Dirk looked around at them, giving a thumbs up. “Sorry. Continue.”

“Fenrir wants to find his siblings and start Ragnarok. They need Todd as a sacrifice for, something, I’m not sure. But it’s not good. We need to go. Like, back when we showed up, but now works too.” Friedkin turned towards the door when someone cleared their throat.

“We can’t just go running after a god. We need a plan.” Farah said, crossing her arms. Friedkin sighed and turned back around.

“I am the plan. I, the whole infinite expanse of the universe, compressed, and supercharged, can take out Fenrir. Any questions? I have several! You have access to all of my knowledge, just answer your own questions!” Farah shook her head.

“We can’t help you without a plan, so, like you said earlier. Deep breath, and relax. We need to work this out.” Farah said, holding her hands up and gesturing for Friedkin to walk back into main area of the apartment.

“Fine. But I still think we should plan on the way. That is, like, a really bad idea. I don’t care what you think. You’re just mean.”

“Girls! Either help, or sit down and be quiet.” Farah said, pointing towards the couch. Friedkin held up his hands and walked over to join the group, leaving Bart and Ethan near the door.

“Now, let’s compare notes. Start at the beginning.” Farah said, looking over at Friedkin. He sighed and nodded, beginning to recount what had started as a normal day.

* * *

**Doctor, We're Not In The Tardis Anymore**

“And that’s pretty much everything that happened during the Cardenas’ Case.” Todd said, glaring out the window as they passed through another town. Adrien made a hmph sound as they pulled off the freeway and headed through another town along a highway. Todd had been this way before, but he wasn’t sure where they were going. He had seen a sign for some sort of park a while back but wasn’t sure if it was anything that would be helpful for him later. Probably not.

The sun had set a while ago, and the darkness of the back country was all encompassing. Todd wasn’t surprised how people could imagine monsters lurking in the trees.

“That is quite the adventure. It has everything. Romance, intrigue, murder, more murder. It’s wonderful.” Todd snorted.

“Yeah, it was super. You and the Mage would have been buddies.”

“I’m sure we would have. He sounded like a man of vision. Clouded vision, but still. So whatever happened to his wand? You mentioned he had it when, well, when your friend blew him up.” Todd shrugged, he actually wasn’t sure what had happened to the Mage’s wand. He knew where Suzie’s was though.

“No idea. I was a little preoccupied making sure my friends didn’t bleed out.” Todd continued to glare out the window as they passed a sign that read ‘Northern State Recreation Site, ¼ Mile’. He had heard of that place, but he couldn’t remember from where.

“Shame, could have come in handy. No matter. We’re almost there.” Todd glanced over.

“Almost where?”

“A safe place. There’s charms all over, so no one will be able to find us, or more specifically, you. Not even the universe if it tried. Though from what you’ve told me, it doesn’t sound like it likes you very much.” Todd rolled his eyes and continued to glare out the window.

“Safe, sure.” he mumbled.

Adrien pulled the car off the main road and down a side road, and towards a cluster of very old, dilapidated buildings. Todd frowned as Adrien pulled around one of the buildings, out of site of the road.

“Come on, get out.” Adrien stepped out of the car, snatching the bag from Todd’s lap. Todd pushed open the car door, slamming it shut as his head swiveled around. The place looked abandoned, but he wasn't that stupid.

“You know, I feel like we have, different definitions of safe.” Adrien chuckled as he walked across the damp grass towards the larger of the buildings.

“Maybe. But I know that no one will be able to find you. At least it won’t be easy. And more than likely they won’t be fast enough.” He pulled open the aging door, and waited as Todd caught up. “After you, and, watch your step, it’s a bit of a dip.”

“It's an old shack, I don't-” Todd paused as he stepped into the building, which looked overwhelmingly more spacious than it had from the outside. He frowned.

“Oh.”

“You’ve had experience with pocket dimensions. This shouldn’t be too surprising.” Adrien moved around him and down the hall, the lights coming up as he moved forward. Todd blinked, taking a second before remembering to rush forward to follow him.

“Yeah, no, it's just. Sort of bigger. Inside. It reminded me of, something. Nothing. You know what? It's not important. How did you do this? You're not like, an alien or whatever.” Todd glanced at the lights as they went off behind them, leaving the path they came in in total darkness.

“I’m not an alien in the way you imagine aliens but I do technically come from another world. Thankfully I didn’t have to do any of this. The coven set it up in preparation for the gathering. It has everything we could need. Rooms, kitchen, sacrificial altar. The works.” Adrien turned a corner, walking through a door into what Todd assumed was some sort of conference area. There was a large center table and a screen on one wall. Adrien continued through the room to another door and headed out into another equally long corridor.

Todd sighed. With every passing moment, his hatred of witches just grew more intense. Couldn't they just give them a break?

“Coven? Those Erebus guys? They're like the only guys left in Seattle. Or Washington, I think.” Todd grimaced, remembering his last confrontation with a coven. Erebus was the biggest coven in Washington state, and after the case last month, they were the last ones left.

Case in point, Farah and witches don't mix well.

“Those are the ones. They mentioned we would need a werewolf and made a suggestion of Dirk Gently. They don’t seem to like him very much. Imagine my surprise when I found you instead.” Adrien smiled back as they walked.

“Disliking Dirk is sort of, universal.” Todd turned around in a circle to get a good look at everything. Maybe remembering the way they were coming could help, somehow. He wasn't in the mood to have something burn because he disobeyed Adrien. “Also, like, no offense, but I rarely like surprises. This is one of those times.”

“Never said it was a surprise for you. This way.” He opened a door, revealing a staircase that led down. Todd sighed, he hated this so much.

“Okay, literally, this place is unnecessarily extra. Couldn't you just go find a warehouse somewhere?”

“You’d have to ask the witches. I suggested my mansion, they didn’t like that idea.” Adrien headed down the stairs, Todd close at his heels. A smell hit Todd in the face, and he almost stopped in his tracks before being pulled forward by his subconscious.

Well, that smelled familiar.

“That's uh…” He glanced around. “Are there other people here?”

“Yes, the researcher has been here for a few days. I have him running information through a computer trying to locate my siblings. It’s been, harder than anticipated to find them.” Adrien pushed open another door into a large open space, almost like a gym or loading bay, Todd wasn’t sure. He wasn't sure that his frown could deepen any more than it already had.

“The researcher? That's pretty cryptic, even for you.” Todd shook out his hands; he didn't like that smell. It hit him the wrong way. Adrien led him across the room.

“Learning names is so very mortal. It’s Kevin, or Kyle, or something.” Adrien glanced back slightly.

Todd stopped in his tracks.

“Wait. What?”

“I said learning names is a very mortal thing to do. When you’re as old as me it doesn’t matter what people’s names are, they won’t be there in fifty to seventy-five years. Why bother you know?” Adrien had stopped and looked back at him. Todd stretched out his arms, groaning.

“Yeah, got that. I just. Those names sound a lot like, someone I really want to hit in the face. And who Bart wants to hit in the face. And Farah. And probably most of the Rowdies.” Todd dared a glance at Adrien. “It's probably not though. Just a, thing. I thought I smelled-”

He sighed in frustration.

“Yeah. Whatever.”

Adrien snorted.

“What are the chances it’s the same person? That would be, well, cosmically that would be hilarious. For me, not for you. Does the universe hate you that much? That probably affects the odds.” Adrien glanced up and over Todd’s shoulder back towards the door.

“Yes.” Todd deadpanned, crossing his arms. “The universe likes to, mess with us. Me. Dirk. A lot. And- what are you looking at?” Todd turned on the spot to follow Adrien's gaze, and for the first time all day, he finally had some good luck.

Well, it was good for his anger issues, anyway. It wasn't good for the man approaching them. Todd made a noise between a growl and a laugh as he watched Ken stop dead, staring at him.

“Was I right? Did the universe hating you affect the odds?” Adrien hissed, leaning down next to Todd’s ear. Todd scowled, still keeping his eyes on Ken.

“Screw off, asshole.”

Todd wasn't sure exactly which one he was talking to at this point.

“Adrien? What the hell is he doing here?” Ken asked, frowning at Todd.

“Oh, well funny story, I went to get that Dirk Gently person, and then I ran into Todd here. He’ll be far more cooperative than the other. Isn’t that right, Todd?” Adrien moved around, and wrapped his arm tightly around Todd’s shoulders. Todd gritted his teeth.

“Why is this not surprising?” He resisted the urge to roll his eyes; he was much more focused on wanting to hit Ken. “How are you- _why,_ are you. You know what? I don't care. Come closer a bit.”

Todd noticed that he was shaking, but that was okay. Of course Ken had been conspiring with the bad guys. Again. Conspiring to take Dirk, no less.

Did this man have any morals at all?

“Nah, I’m good right here. Why didn’t we get Dirk? Was he not available?” Ken asked, frowning over at Adrien. Todd took a step forward, something stirring in the back of his mind.

“At least now I can finally get a hit in before I get sacrificed to your shitty god games.” Todd felt Adrien let go of him.

“Oh enough. Todd, be quiet. And you, Kyle? No, that’s not it, Carter? It doesn’t matter. I grabbed Todd instead because he has to do what I say, I figured that would be easier to work with.” Adrien smiled.

“I'm going to, hit you too.” Todd whispered to himself, taking a deep breath. He could at least be allowed a go at Ken before they went through with this horrible weekend plan.

Seriously, his weekends sucked.

Adrien glared down at him.

“You are not allowed to hit anyone. Sorry, if that ruins your plans.” Adrien growled, shoving the bag into Todd’s hands. “Hold that. Where are we with the locations?” Adrien asked, turning back to Ken. Ken was still frowning but looked up at him.

“I have been able to track Hel’s energy signature to somewhere in northern Canada. But I haven’t been able to find Jormungandr.” Ken said, glancing over at Todd. “Why does he do what you say?”

“Not because I like him.” Todd blinked, something distant clouding his vision. He thought, for a moment, that he could hear Vogel whooping. In a brief second, he almost heard Dirk's heartbeat.

Where was he?

“Because I bit him. It’s a whole thing. Bottom line, he does what I say, and that is far more helpful than a hyperactive chatterbox. Even if we were just going to kill him.” Adrien said, glaring down at Todd. “And I thought I said be quiet?”

Todd shook his head, not quite hearing Adrien. He was busy elsewhere, and he could smell the scent of the shop that Adrien had taken him from. It was like Dirk was looking around his own mind, trying to find which corner he was hidden away in. Todd breathed quietly.

“Dirk. What are you doing?” His voice was almost breathless as his eyes glazed over, and the feeling of Dirk outstretching his hand only intensified.

He wanted to take it. He needed to. But there was that voice, pulling him back, telling him not to contact Dirk. Could he disobey it? It would hurt.

Todd laughed quietly.

“You guys will be so pissed when you see this.” His chuckling trailed off as he heard something call to him again, a voice that wasn't Dirk's. Something in his head was burning. Why was his head burning? Todd blinked, and looked up to see Adrien.

“So pissed when we see what? Were you trying to talk to that bonded of yours? I thought I made myself clear on that front.” Adrien wrapped his hand around Todd’s neck and pulled him off the ground. Todd coughed as he was pulled out of the dream-like state.

“No no, he. He's talking to me.” He grabbed at Adrien's arm, trying to get him away from his neck. He still felt dizzy from the way Dirk had gone searching for him. Nothing of that magnitude had ever happened before; it was like Dirk was somehow more focused in his ability to call out to him. That wasn't likely, was it?

Adrien sighed.

“Fine. From now on you will tell me when he contacts you, and if you try to respond, I break one of your fingers. Does that sound like a fun time to you?” Adrien tightened his grip on Todd’s throat as he glared up at him. Todd barely managed to shake his head. It wouldn't be a good time for him, and he didn't want to subject Dirk to any phantom injuries. He could probably take it, physically, but if Dirk knew that Todd was being hurt, he would freak out.

Speaking of, could Dirk feel the fact that Todd was about to pass out from the lack of oxygen? Hopefully not; he didn't need that. He tried to focus on the spots in his vision. Adrien released him, letting Todd fall to the floor as he loomed over him.

“Good. Now, get up, grab that bag, and follow me.”

Todd grabbed at his head, picking up the bag. Standing up, he felt like the world was going to tip him over again. His lungs were still trying to fill with air. Adrien seemed to be enjoying Todd's inability to get a hold of his surroundings, and Todd was reminded in an awful way of how Dirk would describe Priest. Adrien turned back towards Ken and smiled.

“Keep looking, he’s out there somewhere. I’m sure you can find him, and if not, The Hunter will. Make sure everything is good to go for the coven’s arrival tomorrow. I’m going to take him to one of the cells. Come along.” Adrien turned and continued across the room towards the far door.

Todd took a step forward, and nearly plummeted to the ground as he tripped over his feet. He was able to catch himself, and in the process, catch one last glimpse of Ken. In the passing glance, he almost looked worried.

That was fair. Ken had reasons to be worried. Todd was sure that Dirk would want to bring Bart along on their hunt for him.

Adrien rolled his eyes as Todd scrambled to catch up, bag in hand. He coughed again to clear the burning still residing in his throat as Adrien led him out of the room. How big was this place? Todd could barely even keep track of it now.

They walked down several more hallways and finally came to what looked like some sort of dormitory hall. Adrien walked to the first one and opened the door, revealing a small room with a single bed.

“You will stay here until I come to get you. Any questions?” Adrien asked. Todd stared at him for a moment before Adrien sighed. “You can answer me, Todd.”

“I get a phone call? Or is it strictly shitty horror movie business here?” Todd gasped as he was able to get out some words again; this was beyond annoying. It was inflammatory. Adrien rolled his eyes, snatching the bag from Todd’s hand.

“Only the best horror movies for you. Inside, now.” Adrien gestured to the room. Todd trudged inside, but not before glaring at Adrien. He had to listen to him sure, but that didn't mean he couldn't be difficult. Even mind control couldn't take that part away from him.

Maybe this was why people said he was hard to like. Oh well.

“You suck.”

Adrien laughed as he grabbed the door handle.

“At least buy me a drink first. See you later, Todd. Don’t cause any trouble while I’m gone.” Adrien closed the door, leaving Todd alone in the room. Todd sighed.

The room was bland, plainer than any room he had been in before. And that included when he was captured by that weird agency over in the United Kingdom after talking with that alien. Todd ran his hands over the walls, wishing more than ever he could talk to Dirk.

He needed Dirk.

“Stuck in a room. Creepy guy who likes it when I get hurt. Kidnapped. Ken.” Todd laughed harshly. “Gotta give you credit, Dirk. This really does suck.”

He fell down onto the bed, staring up at the ceiling. He closed his eyes.

“You'll get me out. I know you will.”

* * *

**We Can Do This, But It's Just So Far Away**

The group had come to the conclusion that the best course of action would be for the wolves to try and track Todd’s scent. So Dirk, the Rowdies, and Bart for good measure set out towards the magic shop, following the path Todd had taken.

As they walked, Dirk had a chance to think. Which, in times of crisis, was rarely a good thing.

He couldn’t help but think that if he had gone with Todd that this could have been avoided, or if he had gone instead perhaps the universe would have kept him safe. Not that it did that usually, but he might have had a better chance.

The universe.

The sentience that had dragged him around his entire life was currently sat in his living room, discussing battle strategies with Farah. Dirk had never imagined in his wildest dreams that something like this could ever be a reality. Or that he would actually get to punch the universe. That had been wonderful, but it hadn’t solved any of his problems. Which brought him here, now.

Bart was walking at his side, occasionally glancing towards passing cars and down alleys, most likely listening to their own pull of the universe. Could the universe still talk to them if it was human? Dirk wasn’t sure, he had yet to receive a hunch but that wasn’t overly uncommon.

“Bart?” he asked, watching as they turned towards him. “May I ask you a question?”

“Sure. Ain’t gots nothin’ better to do.” Bart answered, looking ahead to the Rowdies as they continued down the street.

“Has the universe been talking to you?”

“That’s a stupid question. Course it has. We just gots done talkin’ to the universe.” they gestured back towards the apartment as they snorted.

“No, that’s not what I meant. I meant, have you, gotten any hunches, or, whatever it is that you get?” Bart mouthed ‘oh’ and shrugged.

“Yeahs, always do. But,” they thought for a moment, “now they feels, softer. Quieter.” Dirk nodded. Perhaps the universe was still able to communicate with them the way it had before, but most, if not almost all of the universe’s focus was now on Friedkin.

“That makes sense. Thank you.” Dirk looked back up, watching as Vogel bounced inbetween the other Rowdies.

“Dirk?” he glanced back down at Bart who was looking up at him. “I thinks that, wherever we’s going, there’s gonna be someone who needs killin’.” Dirk nodded.

“I expected as much Bart. I’ve at least one person I’d personally like to kill.” Dirk growled.

“The guy who took Todd?”

“Yes.” Bart nodded again.

“How’d he gets him anyway?” Dirk shook his head. He honestly wasn’t sure. The brief moment of communication with Todd had not been enough to fully understand what was going on. It had all happened so fast and Dirk hadn’t been ready.

“I’m not sure, but I’m sure we’ll figure it out. And when we do, Todd will be safe.” Bart clapped him on the back as they rounded the corner, the magic shop coming into view. Vogel raced ahead and let out a growl.

“Closed, Brit! Can we break stuff?!” Dirk glanced at Martin who let a smile creep across his face as he picked up a rock, handing it over to Vogel.

“Get us in there, kid.” Vogel grabbed the rock, with a whoop and threw it at the door, the entire glass plate shattered, raining glass to the ground accompanied by the sounds of whoops from the other Rowdies. Even Bart had started cackling. Dirk stepped around them and climbed through the broken door, taking a deep breath.

Todd had been here. For quite some time right next to the door. Dirk frowned as he tried to imagine what he had been doing. There wasn’t anything near the front door to look at, he must have been talking to someone. But who? Dirk sighed and closed his eyes.

Todd. Where was Todd? Surely, he was with whoever he was talking to. Who else would have taken him? Dirk stayed in the background as the others talked to one another, sinking down on the ground in the doorway where Todd's scent was the strongest. With his hunches quieter, it felt much easier to slip into that darkness that bonded him and Todd together.

He buried his head in his knees, searching the darkness for Todd. He had to be somewhere, didn't he? He called out his name, but nothing happened. Squeezing his hands together, he held his knees tighter together as he tried to reach out again into the darkness.

The darkness broke for a fraction of a second, and what looked like a spacious room filled his vision before disappearing again.

Todd.

Dirk pressed forward, swimming towards that room and the sound of Todd's heartbeat. He could almost hear someone talking in the background, one of the voices somewhat familiar. Dirk whispered for him, and he thought he felt Todd stir.

_“You guys will be so pissed when you see this.”_

Todd. It was Todd. Dirk could hear him.

He was ripped out of the calm, dark sea of Todd's heartbeat as something gripped Todd up, and Dirk was sent in a wave back to reality. He sprang back, hitting his head against the doorframe and gasped for air.

“Shit.”

“Yo, Dirk?” Vogel tilted his head, frowning slightly. “You like, you okay man?” Dirk shook his head.

“Todd. There's something wrong.” He paused. “Apparently, there's something for us to be 'pissed’ about, according to him.”

“You talk to Pup, Dirk?!”

“Only briefly. It's easier now, but something is stopping him from talking to me. I think it's on his end.” Dirk rubbed his head. He just wanted to get Todd back.

This was hardly fair.

His scent carried further into the shop and Dirk stood, following it, the sounds of the Rowdies close behind.

He made it all the way to an aisle filled with vials when the scent vanished. Dirk stopped, and took another breath. The scent definitely led to this aisle, but then it vanished. Where had he gone? Martin appeared at his side glancing at the shelves.

“I don’t understand. Where did he go?” Dirk asked, watching as Martin moved forward and grabbed a bottle from the shelf. He let out a growl and tossed the bottle to Dirk.

“Mistletoe. It’s an old trick. Hides the scent. He didn’t go nowhere, we just can’t smell him.” Dirk’s eyes widened as he looked down at the bottle.

“So, we can’t track him? At all? How are we supposed to find him?” Martin glanced over, frowning.

“We can’t, not this way. We’ll have to go back and talk to that Friedkin. Maybe he can find him.” Dirk glared up at him.

“Because the universe is always so helpful.” Dirk pocketed the bottle and looked around the shop. No one was here, which made sense because of the closed sign, but Dirk couldn’t help but feel like there should have been something there. Perhaps they were too early? More than likely they were too late. Bart seemed to be thinking the same as they glanced towards the front counter.

“Let’s just, let’s just go back. We can talk to Friedkin, and come up with a different plan.” He had moved back toward the door and stopped, inhaling deeply and closing his eyes. He could feel Todd, wherever he was, there hadn’t been any pain, and only anger and annoyance, which boded well for how he was faring. But it didn’t help calm Dirk.

Stepping back through the door and out onto the street he sighed, the others close behind. Vogel came up next to him as they started back, carefully bumping his arm up against Dirk’s.

“We’ll find him. It’ll be okay, Dirk.” Vogel said, his voice quiet, a rare thing to witness. Dirk glanced over and nodded.

“I hope so, Vogel.” he didn’t mention the soft hunch that settled in the pit of his stomach, the one that whispered ‘wrong’ over and over again.

* * *

**Trauma With A Side Of Fries**

Dirk leaned against the wall near the front door. The walk back to the apartment hadn't been any better, and if anything, Dirk had only gotten more panicked. It got to the point where Gripps and Martin had had to hold Dirk up as they'd turned the block onto the right street, and had deposited him next to the chairs that were usually reserved for the shark cat, who got aggressive if she didn't have her own place to sit. Dirk took a deep breath.

“This is, entirely not happening.” Dirk whined as he screwed up his face. “Todd, has, gone missing. I am currently housing Hugo Friedkin in my apartment. The universe, is sitting on my couch. Gripps and Cross, aren't even trying to comfort me with PopTarts.”

“I mean-”

“No.”

Dirk felt around for the nearest chair, sinking into it as he glanced up at Friedkin, or rather the universe. Friedverse, maybe? Friedverse narrowed their eyes as they registered the emotion in Dirk's face.

“Why, do you do this to me?”

“Me? You think I have any control over the actions of gods?” They answered, glaring over, matching his expression. Dirk took a ragged breath.

“I meant, Todd.” He brushed the stray hairs out of his eyes, trying to get a grip on himself. “Todd is constantly thrown back into my life, even when he hates me. I want him around. And now he's been taken. Again. And you're sitting in front my television.”

“That’s the way interconnectedness works. Random chance, fate, free will. I can only account for so many things when trying to keep you alive. It’s either alive or happy. Dude, I think he's like, upset maybe? So? He’s always upset.”

“Shut up.” Dirk leaned his head back, blinking away a burning sensation in his eyes. “Screw interconnectedness! Screw being holistic or, psychic or whatever! Because of me, everyone is constantly in the line of fire! I'm the one who sent him to that shop! And you're bickering with your new roommate about feelings.”

“Feelings are irrelevant. They cloud your judgement. That’s why we’re here. You _felt_ like you knew better than me, and ignored what I told you. You _felt_ like Todd could handle himself. _You_ were wrong. Maybe, not that word? It’s not–”

“Wrong?! Me? I'm the wrong one!?” Dirk made a sound that was close to a scoff, and turned his gaze back down to Friedverse. “ _I’m_ not the one who dragged a child to Blackwing on a stupid hunch! I'm not the one who told Bart not to kill Priest! You don't _get_ to act all high and mighty. This isn't your place. You have- you don't, have a right, to…” Dirk trailed off, breathing heavily as he tried to blink away tears for the second time.

“I am so, tired.”

“Wait, maybe before we– Shut up, Hugo. You were wrong. I didn’t take you to Blackwing. I told you to run the other way. But you were scared. You didn’t like listening to me. So you went, with those people, and they locked you up. And while you were away the universe decayed. I decayed. _You_ let yourself be taken. If you had listened to me–”

“Right. That makes sense.” Dirk's voice was dejected. There was no hint of sarcasm. “Blackwing. My fault. Priest. My fault. Todd. My fault. Everything that they did when I was wrong. My fault. Wrong wrong every single day. Even out here I can't, get away from it. Dirk Gently. What a stupid name.”

He closed his eyes, slumping into the seat.

“Would you prefer I call you Svlad Cjelli instead? Why would you say that?!”

“Doesn't matter.” Dirk covered his face with his hands, his chest contracting as the name rang in his ears, reminding him of his days in Blackwing. Reminding him of Priest. “He was right. Dangerous and confused and small. This is fine.”

“I don’t understand. That’s not what you normally do.” Friedverse said, tipping their head.

“What I normally do gets people killed!” Dirk snapped at him, causing Friedverse to jump in their seat. “Everyone except goddamn Blackwing! It doesn't matter. Nothing has since since I was eleven years old. Priest was- he's just. Right.”

The others in the background were frowning at the interaction, not sure how to help.

“I don’t understand. This is the point where you get up and do something, what makes this time different. Is it really that you fear being wrong so much? Emotions seem like the root of your problems. Positive, negative, they both seem to affect you in ways you do not expect. Why then, do you break the pattern now? Your name has always spurred you forward, what’s changed?” Friedverse stood, moving forward.

Dirk laughed.

“For the universe, you don't pay much attention. Mr. Friedkin, I know you eventually read the files. Why don't you tell your friend exactly what used to happen when I'm wrong?” He glanced at them from between his fingers, breathing deeply. Friedverse’s face fell.

“Well, um, when– I know what happened Hugo, I was there. But I don’t understand. You healed. You’re fine. Why does this affect you so?”

“Healed? What is that supposed to mean?” Dirk dropped his hands, tilting his head. He appeared to have started crying, and his face was red.

“Example. December 17th, 1995. You received several wrong answers in that day’s testing. In punishment, Osmund Priest shattered both of your femurs. You were taken to the medical ward where Saileen Maru healed you using their rapid cellular regeneration ability. Your legs healed. There was no lasting physical damage. Are more examples required?”

Dirk gave a sob as he turned away, curling up in the chair. From that angle, he looked like he was shaking. He stayed like that for several minutes, not responding to Friedverse. They heard him taking unsteady breaths, and from the other side of the room, Martin growled at them.

“This is inefficient. You are in emotional distress. Allow me to assist you. Whoa, wait, what are we doing? We’re going to absorb his emotions and allow him to think clearly. Um, maybe we shouldn’t–” Dirk felt a hand on his shoulder. He sprung off the chair, hitting their arm away and stumbling into Martin. Friedverse put their hands up.

“Maybe not.” Martin glared at them, letting Dirk go. Dirk sank to the ground as the trembling in his legs overwhelmed him, the memory of Priest the only prevalent thought in his mind. “Got anymore bright ideas?”

“Yes, that one. Move.” Friedverse waved their hand and Martin was suddenly across the room.

“That's, hold on. You have this all mixed up.” Farah stepped forward, over Dirk, to get a better look at Friedverse. She frowned. “Dirk is healed physically. But the scars on his memories aren't going to go away. He's more traumatized by that stuff with with Blackwing than even I can comprehend. It _hurts_ him to think about it.”

“But it doesn’t hurt me. I can help him to think for this moment, now move.” Farah put out her hand.

“I will. But you have to understand where he's coming from first. You're not the one who was experimented on as a child. That sort of thing doesn't heal. It's going to hurt him forever. Bringing it up like that will only make it worse.”

“I understand where he’s coming from Farah Black. I was there. I’m sure I can handle some basic human emotions. Now, are you going to let me help him, or should I move you?”

“It isn't basic. But be my guest. And do _not,_ touch him.” Farah glared at them as she stepped out of the way, earning growls from all five of the Rowdies currently present.

Friedverse stared down at Dirk and took a breath.

“How bad can some negative emotions be? Maybe we shouldn’t do this!” Friedverse raised their hand and bright blue light flashed through the apartment. Dirk let out another, quieter cry, and Friedverse's face fell, a frown quickly dissolving into terror and pain. They cried out, falling to the ground, clutching at their chest.

“What, why– what is this?!”

Dirk blinked, his eyes still filled with tears, and propped up on his elbows to glance at Friedverse. He opened his mouth to speak, but couldn't find the right words to say as he watched them lay grabbing at their chest at his feet.

“I can’t, why, what’s this pain?” Friedverse tried for a breath and failed, choking on a sob.

“Um, Mr. Friedverse? Are you, alright?” Dirk looked at them in concern, wiping the tears from his face. He felt strangely empty, watching the being that used to be Friedkin cry on the ground.

“Dude, they like, ate your emotions, I think they might be dying.” Amanda said, moving backward slightly. Dirk raised his eyebrows.

“Why? They're just emotions. Was I panicking?”

“Sort of, yeah man.” Dirk waved his hand dismissively.

“Oh, well, that's fine. Usually Todd just starts singing and I calm down and- oh. Todd isn't here. Right.” He glanced back at Friedverse, who was still struggling to breathe. “Do you need assistance? I do know how to deal with my own panic attacks. Sort of.”

“Make it stop!” The glass in the room vibrated dangerously. Dirk looked around nervously.

“Ah. Yes. Well. You have seemed to have eaten one of my panic attacks - probably about Priest, if I'm being honest, judging by how much pain you're in - and those don't really go away until I feel safe again. Do you feel safe?” Dirk gave a quiet laugh, not sure how to help.

Friedverse shook their head, sitting up and pushing themselves against the wall. They waved their hand and the lights in the room turned up, driving out the shadows. Dirk looked mildly impressed, if not a little bit terrified.

“Yes. Definitely Priest, then. Uh…” Dirk trailed off. “Mr. Friedverse? I need you to open your eyes. Todd says it's the first step.”

“No! Priest is here.”

“Awful as that would be, he isn't. Farah shot him. You're in an apartment building.” Dirk's face lit up as an idea illuminated his features. “You think you're in Blackwing! When Amanda said you ate my emotions, she was only half right! You took more than that, you took. Everything! Probably whatever sort of flashback I was having at the time too and-” He stopped as he noticed that Friedverse was trembling.

“It hurts. Everything. Hurts. Why?!”

Dirk's gaze softened as he shifted away from them, trying to give them some space to breathe. He sighed quietly.

“My panic attacks aren't some fleeting thing. They're very real. Very tangible. And very harmful, if I can't recover in time. But you aren't in Blackwing. Priest isn't here. He's never come after you. I would know. He liked to boast about his hunts to me. Can you, tell me what is happening? Mr. Friedverse?”

“He’s there. I was wrong. He– this is my fault. I created him, you. This is– this is all my fault!” The glasses in the kitchen rattled again. Exploding with a high pitched whistle. Dirk yelped as he ducked from the glass shards.

“While I won't disagree with you, I would like to state for the record that he isn't there. Or not now. Not anymore. He isn't, alive, anymore. It's a panic attack. It can be fixed. But you've got to open your eyes.” Dirk glanced at him desperately. “Hugo? Are you still in there? Can you make them open their eyes?”

“No! I– he’s– we’re– everything is broken.” Friedverse opened their eyes, glancing at Dirk as tears streamed down their face.

“Everything is broken, and it’s my fault. I thought, I could fix it, I thought I could help. I made it worse. I made a monster who hurt you, all of you.”

Dirk smiled.

“Everything _is_ broken, Mr. Friedverse. But that's the beauty of it! Broken things get to be fixed, made into something new! That's what being a person is. Taking things you broke and, making it better. Because you can. Emotions are what make it great. Because after you're sad, you are extraordinarily happy.

“Priest is- was, indeed a horrible person. I could go on for days about everything he's done to me alone. But I am literally incapable of feeling much of any negative emotions right now, and I can say for certain that he's gone. He's not coming back. We simply have to live with the side effects he left us. Can you tell me where you are right now?”

Dirk gave another smile, trying to encourage them to look around the room.

“Lost. Small. Broken and pained, and– and– Earth. With you.”

“And not in Blackwing. You're in Seattle. Far away from where Blackwing was placed.” Dirk laughed quietly. “Friedverse, I do believe you've just learned the very depth of human emotion.”

“I, I don’t like it.” They fell to the side, hitting the ground hard, their eyes falling closed. They heard Dirk sigh.

“I don't like it either. But we learn to live with it.”

The world fell into darkness, and the universe thought it heard Hugo whispering to it.

* * *

**Dogs Are A Gift To World, But Todd Is A Cat Person**

Todd wasn't sure how long he'd been in his cell, just that by the time anyone came around again, he had drifted in and out of consciousness several times. There was nothing else to do besides lay there and sleep.

Todd glanced up as Adrien opened the door, and promptly let his head fall back onto the pillow, groaning.

“Great. It's you.”

“Good morning to you too. Are you always this pleasant or is this something special for me?” Adrien smirked.

“I'm not a morning person.” Todd deadpanned, pulling the hard pillow out from under him and putting it over his head to block Adrien from view. “What do you want?”

“Ideally, my father dead, but that’s not really something you can help me with. At the moment, for you to come with me. Come on.” Todd sighed as he felt himself kick onto the floor to follow Adrien; he didn't feel like listening to him monologue. Adrien smiled at Todd's tired expression.

“Sleep well?” Adrien asked, heading out into the hall.

“As well as Dirk does. So, no.” Todd yawned. He had barely even gotten a few hours. He kept getting woken up by his anxiety throughout what apparently was the night.

“That sounds awful. I slept wonderfully, far away from this place. It was fantastic. Do you eat breakfast?” Adrien asked, leading him down a new set of corridors. Todd narrowed his eyes.

“That's a- that's a weird question. Yeah?”

“Good then we’ll swing by the kitchen before I drop you off with Ken.”

Todd groaned.

“Ken? Why? And why are you like, giving me breakfast?”

“I mean, I don’t have to give you breakfast, I just thought you might be hungry. I’m not sure Ken really eats when he works, so it could be several more hours before you eat again. Up to you.” Adrien had paused at a split in the hallway.

Todd couldn't remember eating much, if anything, since the party right before the full moon. If he had something, it probably wasn't much. It was just impossible to remember in the haze of sleep. He noted the way that his stomach was aching, and it registered dimly to him that it had been doing that for awhile. Todd shrugged, filling Adrien down a corner.

“Breakfast with my kidnapper. Sure, why not. I need food anyway.” Adrien smirked, taking the hall to the right.

“I’m sure. Perhaps by the end of this we’ll be friends. Or well, acquaintances? Maybe I’ll try to find another wolf while I’m out today. Then maybe you won’t have to die. That would be fun right?” Adrien didn’t sound overly interested in what he was saying.

“Depends on your definition of fun, considering I'm most likely going to die in like a day. So. Keep dreaming about that friend thing.” Todd yawned again as he followed Adrien into yet another long hallway. How big was this place?

“I could just tell you to be my friend. It would work, in theory. I’m not sure, again, it’s been a while.” Adrien pushed open a door into a kitchen, waiting for Todd to walk through before closing it.

Todd nearly melted as he saw the food stacked around the room, and momentarily forgot his anger with Adrien.

“Creepy, but, yeah. Whatever. This is a lot of food. I'm starving.” Todd leaned against a counter, rubbing his eyes.

“Do you cook?” Adrien asked, moving around the kitchen, grabbing various items and placing them on the center island. Todd stared at the pile.

“Better than Dirk. Worse than Hobbs. I can try.”

Todd wasn't about to pass up the opportunity to have at least one good meal before he was murdered. Last wishes, and all that. If he couldn't see Dirk, than he was at least going to have this.

“Is that what you want to do? I am immortal, I have picked up a few things through the years.” Adrien smirked, pulling a pan out from a drawer. Todd glanced at him from the corner of his eyes frowning.

“Are you offering?” Todd didn't add the second part of his thought, which was that that was very suspicious if he was indeed offering to cook. What would he have to gain from it? Todd didn't trust this one bit.

“Sure. It’s been a while since I cooked for anyone other than myself. What would you like?” Adrien leaned against the counter, watching Todd carefully.

Todd laughed to himself.

“Not PopTarts.” He blinked, suddenly remembering where he was. “Uh, shoot, I mean. Just… uh, eggs?” The image of Dirk holding a nearly empty carton of eggs filled his mind, and for a moment, he felt the tension in his chest ease as that morning washed over him. For a second, he could pretend that that was where he still was.

With Dirk.

“Eggs. Easy enough. Anything else? Or just that?”

“Is this like, a last meal type of deal or something?” Todd frowned again down at the food. “Why are you being not an asshole?”

“I guess that depends on whether or not I find another wolf. And I have more than one side of my personality Todd, I’m not some two dimensional villain from a comic book.”

“Hm.” Maybe he wouldn't get along with The Mage, then. Todd shrugged. “Is there like, fruit or something? Dirk likes to buy pineapple. It's, not bad.” Adrien frowned but laughed.

“I think there’s some in that cupboard behind you. Would you like to take a look?” Adrien asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Sure, guy who's not suspicious at all for changing his tactic with talking to me.” Todd turned behind him, opening the cabinet. Sure enough, there were a few cans of what looked like processed pineapple. He swiped two of them, putting them on the table as he closed it and turned back to Adrien, who was currently opening a new carton of eggs.

“I could go back to ordering you around if you prefer. I just find it easier to get people to do what you want if they agree with it.” Adrien smiled, before holding up an egg. “How do you like your eggs?”

“Scrambled, I guess.” Todd snapped his fingers. “And you know what? Let's just, not go back to that. At least until I'm done eating.” He picked up a can, examining it.

“Can we open this with something, or?”

“Drawer next to the sink.” Adrien said, turning to grab a bowl and fork. Todd grunted, ducking past the counters to the drawer Adrien had given a pointed look to. Sure enough, he found a can opener, and was soon eating the pineapple out of the can with a fork. This was better than nothing, and didn't taste as bad as he remembered. That may have had something to do with the fact that he hadn't really eaten, though.

“So what do you like to do when you’re not solving cases?” Adrien asked, glancing up from cooking.

“Weird question. I take care of the cat sometimes, and fill out forms. And stop Bart from killing clients.” Todd looked down. “I take Dirk to an ice cream place sometimes. I don't go there alone a lot.”

“That’s cute. How’d that get started? You two?” Adrien looked back down at the pan. Todd exhaled.

“It was uh, kind of set up. By the Rowdies. Sort of. Martin knew that Dirk and I were like, bonded and all that. So.” Todd shoved another piece of pineapple into his mouth. “Although technically, we met when he broke into my apartment.”

“Wait, you bonded before you started dating?” Adrien asked, glancing up. “And broke into your apartment? Correct me if I’m wrong but that’s not typical, right?”

Todd snorted.

“Yeah, no, definitely not. There was a case, and a thing and, a lot of stuff. It's weird.” Todd placed the empty can aside, already eyeing the other one. “And yeah like, the whole bonded thing was what made us, sort of, admit that we liked each other? In the first place? God, I sound like a twelve year old.” Todd pushed himself off of the sink to grab the other can; he was still hungry.

“A little bit. But that sounds cute, sort of. How did telling him go?” Adrien plated the eggs and slid them towards Todd. Todd grabbed the plate and sat up on the table to eat them.

“Pretty bad. And then, not so bad. And then actually sort of good. It was, cool.” Todd grabbed a fork that Adrien had held out and started eating the plate of eggs. There were a lot of them.

“You realize that’s like, all of the ways something could go, yes? I mean, it turned out fine, you’re bonded and he’s a werewolf, but was it awkward? Or did you just skip right over that?” Adrien moved to the fridge, grabbing an apple.

“Oh no no, it was, definitely awkward. We took awhile to learn like, boundaries and shit before we did much of anything.” Todd coughed, and put down his fork for a moment to swallow the eggs before he tried to speak again.

“And by try anything, you mean…” Adrien was smirking around the apple. Todd’s eyes widened.

“Kissing. And like, cuddling and whatever. Dirk isn't into all that other… stuff. It's just, not his thing. I don't mind, really. I'm glad he told me before anything happened.” Todd picked up the fork again, this time eating the eggs at a slower pace. Adrien nodded slowly.

“Well good for you two. Communication is key. Or, so it has been explained to me.” Adrien grabbed a kettle and filled it with water. “Coffee or tea?”

“Tea.” Todd responded instinctively. He'd been basically living with Dirk for a few months now, and he was conditioned to drink tea now. Dirk had made sure of it. He considered changing his choice to coffee, but decided against it.

One way he could feel closer to Dirk.

Todd frowned down at his plate; when had he eaten all of the eggs? He exhaled as he placed the plate and the fork down next to him, going to grab the unopened second can of pineapple. Opening it, he glanced up at Adrien. He still had the equivalent of Kill Bill sirens going off in his head whenever he looked at him.

“So he broke into your apartment, your relationship went out of order, and now you’re here. The universe really must hate you. Or him. Or both possibly. I feel, almost sorry for having to rope you into this whole thing.” Adrien turned the stove back on and stared down at the kettle. Todd sighed.

“You know what? This is actually one of the tamer situations I've been dragged into in the last, like, year and a half or something. So. That's a thing.” Todd stared at the cooking utensils hanging off of the wall as he ate.

“Really? Tell– like what?” Adrien corrected, glancing up. Todd narrowed his eyes.

“Aliens. Lots of aliens. With weird clothes. And alien robots. And then there were the fairy rings in Bergsberg. Boggarts are like, surprisingly strong. Oh, and then there was the queen. That was… she had like three heads. It's...weird. Long story short, like, I've been close to death way too many times for breakfast to be super worrying.”

“They should write songs about you. They don’t do that anymore. It used to be a thing. Big long epics about heroes, and battles, and saving the day. Sounds like you could use a few epics about your adventures.” Adrien smiled over as the kettle started to whistle. Todd couldn't help himself from chuckling, smiling fondly at nothing in particular.

“Dirk's done way more than me. But no one's ever going to honor him. So.” He trailed off, staring at the floor as something stirred somewhere in the distance.

Dirk.

“That sounds sad.” Adrien said, turning to grab some mugs and an assortment of tea bags. Todd frowned at nothing in particular as a loud thumping noise filled his eardrums, his chest starting to cave in as the sound got louder.

Where was it coming from?

“I guess… I. Is that like, an actual sound or am I just hearing it from nothing?” Todd's ears had picked up on a familiar beat, but his mind was still clouded with the remnants of sleep, and for the life of him he couldn't remember what it was. His frown deepened.

“What sound?” Adrien asked, placing the mugs down and frowning. Todd placed his hand to his ear, gesturing vaguely.

“The, sound. The beat. It's, loud.” Todd shut his eyes, trying to get the noise away from him.

“Todd, I can’t hear anything, and my hearing is better than yours, are you okay?”

Todd put the half eaten can of pineapple down, brushing his hair back.

“It just. Sounds familiar. I don't- I'm too tired to remember.” He blinked again, trying to ground himself. Adrien moved forward, standing in front of him.

“What does it sound like?” He asked. Todd shook his head.

“It. Just like. A drum. But not. Like, deeper than a drum. A peaceful drum, like-” Todd stopped. “My head hurts.”

Todd stopped breathing for a second.

“Oh. Shit.” Todd leaned his head back. “Dirk.”

“What about him?” Adrien asked.

“He's having a nightmare. I'm, supposed to help him with those I, I made him talk about Priest I made him- I. Shit. What am I doing? I'm eating, breakfast, with. What the hell?” Todd pushed himself off the table, grabbing his head and shutting his eyes as the world spun momentarily around him. He stumbled backwards a few steps.

“Shit. Dirk. _Shit.”_

“Todd, relax.” Adrien said, his voice louder than it needed to be. Todd slumped into the wall automatically, still holding his head. He didn't bother looking up at Adrien.

“Don’t panic. Take a breath.” Adrien said, still from where he had been standing. Todd blinked, sulking slightly at the fact that he was back to being bossed around. He needed to help Dirk. His nightmare was effecting Todd too. Todd's hands fell away from his head as he looked up, glancing about the room.

“Tell me what’s happening.” Adrien had moved forward slightly, keep his distance from Todd. Todd grimaced.

“Priest. Only Priest can. Make him feel that way. He's having another nightmare about him.” Todd whispered, rolling his shoulders to try and keep from freaking out again.

“How do you usually stop the nightmares?” Adrien asked, kneeling down next to Todd.

“Sing. Tell him that Priest is dead. Hey Jude.”

“Have you ever been apart when he has a nightmare?” Todd groaned, feeling like Priest was looking over him.

“I don't. There was a case. But. I got. Back. Shit. Shit. Priest.” Todd closed his eyes again; he was almost expecting to see Priest walk into the room. He could usually wake Dirk up before the panic got to both of them, but now they were stuck in a loop.

“Todd, are you having a panic attack?” Adrien had moved closer. Todd groaned.

“No. Yes. Maybe. I don’t know. I can't, breathe. Dirk.”

Adrien grabbed tight to the front of his shirt and pulled him forward, smashing his lips against Todd’s. Todd had a moment where he couldn’t breathe and then his brain refocused, no longer on the fear or the crushing panic, but on Adrien. Who was kissing him. Todd growled, pushing his hands against Adrien’s chest, trying to get him away. Adrien moved with the pushing and pulled back, smirking at him.

“Better?” He asked. A growl rose up in Todd's throat as he braced himself against the wall.

“What the _fuck_ was that?!” Todd scowled at him, breathing heavily.

“I stopped your panic attack. Ordering you around wasn’t working. Did that work?” Adrien asked, leaning back on his heels. He seemed unaffected by what he had just done.

“Did it- what?! How is that- what. Are you screwing with me?! You just kidnapped me, and plan to kill me, and now you're being, a creep! No offense, I'm getting mixed signals!” Todd screamed at Adrien, clenching and unclenching his hands. He still couldn't hit Adrien, not without hurting himself.

“You were in pain, yes? Now you are no longer in pain, correct? How is this worse?” Adrien asked, tilting his head slightly.

“My boyfriend! Was having a nightmare! About the shit that your researcher let happen! My boyfriend! Who I'm dating! You don't kiss people, asshole!”

“Is he still having a nightmare?” Adrien asked, smirking.

“No! Probably because I'm so pissed off!”

“Well, then I solved two problems.” Adrien smiled, pushing himself off the floor. Todd took a breath.

“You. Get the hell away from me. Don't, come near me. Don't even talk to, just.” Todd screeched in frustration. Adrien sighed, glancing down at him.

“Calm down. You’re being over dramatic.” Todd laughed.

“You know what? I think I'm going to stay angry, thanks.” Todd's chest started to burn as he glared at Adrien, refusing to calm down as he'd told him.

“You could do that. Or you could calm down and keep your fingers intact.” Adrien smirked.

“I hate you. Whatever.” Todd diverted his eyes as the burning in his chest faded slightly, his breathing evening out.

“From what you’ve told me, you hated Dirk at first too. It’s only a matter of time right? And I’ve got all the time in the world.” Adrien smiled down at him.

“Well, I'm going to be dead in a day. So. All things considered, pretty bad tactic.”

“I don’t know. I’ve got a good feeling about you, Todd. You shouldn’t have survived, but the universe found favor with you and you did. I’m sure, the universe will smile on you again.”

Todd grunted.

“I’d rather fight Priest, thanks. And get any closer to me and I'll kick you in the stomach.”

“What’s that saying? Careful what you wish for? Stand up.” Adrien was still smiling at him, his canines visible. Todd gritted his teeth as he stood; it was too early in the morning for this. Probably. He didn't even know what time it actually was. Dirk sleeping wasn't any real indicator. Dirk was always, always sleeping.

“Follow me.” Adrien headed back out of the kitchen, and away from the way they had come. Todd close at his heels. They had only walked a short distance before Adrien stopped at a door.

“You will be spending time with Ken today. Ken has a lot of work to get done so you will not hit Ken, try to kill Ken, actually kill Ken, damage his computers, or read any of the screens. Is that clear?” Adrien smirked.

“Super clear.” Todd exhaled sharply.

“Good.” He knocked on the door, before turning to leave. “Don’t try to leave while I’m gone.”

“Nowhere to go, asshole.”

Ken opened the door and glared at Todd, glancing down the hall as Adrien disappeared. He looked back and frowned.

“Well isn’t this fun.” Ken growled.

“Whatever.” Todd pushed past him, falling into a chair. “Who cares.”

Adrien was a bigger threat than he thought.

* * *

**Literally, Just Stop Talking**

Hugo couldn’t remember the last time he had gotten blackout drunk. But the pain in his head was pretty close. He groaned and tried to roll over, not feeling the edge of the couch before it was too late. He landed with a hard crash on the floor, sparking noise from elsewhere in the apartment.

“Dum wak op! Dum wak op!” The rainbow haired monster pointed at Friedverse, screeching as she jumped up on the bed. The others on the bed groaned as she jumped in place, pointing at him on the ground.

“sas dum wak!” Beast jumped off of the bed, landing with a thump on the ground, and ran to find someone to pull over from the kitchen. The sounds of Farah's grumbling could be heard approaching the couch, and when she finally came into view, she looked exhausted as she stared down at them.

“Hey. You're awake. I guess.”

“Did we die? Cause it felt like we died.” Farah shook her head, taking a long sip of whatever she was holding.

“No. You didn't. You _did_ pass out though. Because apparently the universe can't withstand one of Dirk's more minor panic attacks.”

“What do you mean minor? Our heart almost exploded. That was, awful.” Friedverse closed their eyes, taking a deep breath. “Whatever. We need air.”

“Maybe open a window. Dirk's on the roof right now. He wants to be alone.” Farah waved at them dismissively, pointing her cup upside down, frowning when nothing came out. She glanced back at Martin in the kitchen. “Is there anymore coffee?”

He shook his head.

Farah sighed, crossing her arms as Friedverse tilted their head. Friedverse waved their hand, a beeping sounded from the kitchen.

“That should last for a while. We’ll be back.” They pushed off the couch and headed for the door.

“I literally just said not to bother him. He had a nightmare. The panic attacks that they cause are way worse on him than the one you absorbed.” Farah called after them, eyeing the coffee maker.

“We’ll walk the block, relax.” They opened the door, watching their feet as they closed it behind them. They took a step into what should have been the hall but were met by fresh air and concrete. They looked up, taken aback by the sudden change in atmosphere. They were outside. But more importantly, they weren’t on the street. They were on the roof.

“Why are we here?” They hissed to themselves. “I don’t know. I didn’t plan this, Hugo.” A shuffling off to the side caught their attention. A head had turned, and as their eyes adjusted to the light, it took a moment for them to realize who it was.

Dirk stared at them, his head raised in something between being panicked and alert. He eyed them wearily for a moment before sinking back down into the corner he had lodged himself in.

“Sorry, we, didn’t mean to. We just, ended up here. We’ll go.” They turned to leave, reaching for the handle on the door.

“Wait.”

Friedverse stopped, their hand just over the handle. Dirk opened his mouth, not sure how to proceed.

“I'm sorry. I'm sorry I'm, wrong to, ask you to wait. Sorry.” Dirk buried his head in his knees. “It's just. I feel like, he's going to climb out of a vent or something. It's not very fun, being alone up here.” Friedverse turned and then was standing next to Dirk. He gave a small start but relaxed.

“Why didn’t you bring one of the others?” They asked, sitting carefully. Dirk shook his head.

“No they, they're all tired. I don't think anyone's properly slept since Todd left. I, don't want to bother them.” Dirk closed his eyes, grabbing at his pant leg. “That would be wrong. Maybe. I think I'm, not sure, I…”

He let out an unsteady breath.

“It’s...okay, not to know the answers.” The universe started. They could feel Hugo listening intently. “I think, I pushed you too hard, expected too much. I shouldn’t have made you feel like you either had to be right or wrong. You, we? Everyone is allowed to not know things. But, your friends, they, they wouldn’t have cared. They, tried so hard yesterday to get me to see, and I just, couldn’t. This would be a piece of cake in comparison. Not! Not to say that this is, a, piece of cake.” They sighed. “Are you alright?”

Dirk made what looked like a small shrug.

“I had a nightmare, did you know?” Dirk's shoulders moved unevenly with his breathing. “It's an, old one really. Haven't had it since I met Todd. Back when they, first sent him to my room. Priest. That's what it was, well. I was small. Very small. I don't… understand, that. I was a child, I-” A tremor rocked Dirk's body and he curled back into his knees, trying to catch his breath.

Dirk clenched his hands together.

“I don't… I don't know. Seeing you panic. It reminded me of myself, when I was eleven. When I would, lay awake at night. Just waiting to hear his footsteps. I never knew when he was coming.” Dirk went to take another breath, but a cry came out instead.

He clamped his mouth shut, trying to hold himself together.

“I– hey, it’s okay. Like you said, he’s not here anymore. He can’t get to you. Tell me what you need.”

“He can't get me. But his memory can.” Dirk curled in a little tighter. “I need this to end already. But it can't. And it won't. And I'm stuck dealing with this without him.”

“Without Todd?”

Dirk nodded slowly, his eyes still shut as he tried to steady his breathing. All he could see, eyes opened or closed, was Blackwing.

“What would Todd do at this point?”

“Good question. He liked to sing, sometimes. On bad nights, when he couldn't touch me. Other times we’d curl up next to the kitten.” Dirk let out a pitiful laugh. “He once told me that if he ever saw Priest, he was going to run him over with the Rowdies’ stolen van.”

“Well, we can’t sing. But we can bring the cat up if you would like.” Friedverse offered, scooting closer.

“If she was sleeping, I wouldn't suggest it unless you don't want your arms.” Dirk put his hands over his head, shielding himself from the rest of the world. Everything around him felt like it was going to burst, too bright and too loud for comfort.

“I just- everything feels like that, room. That place. Even you, which isn't that far-fetched, considering Hugo had me captured.”

“I helped save the day! Hugo. We want to help. Are– is it okay– can we hug you?” They asked carefully. Dirk shrugged again.

“I had the nightmare two hours ago. These are just the remnants of it. I'm not going to slap you, if that's what you're asking.” Dirk looked up and out, his eyes looking more tired than Friedverse had yet seen them. They looked far too old and experienced for someone of Dirk's age.

The universe wasn’t quite sure what to do, but Hugo knew. They scooted closer, side by side with Dirk and draped their arm around his shoulders, pulling him in. Dirk tensed for a moment, but soon relaxed again, sitting in silence.

Friedverse frowned at the way Dirk was still trembling.

“Is this helping?” They asked. Dirk nodded, attempting another breath. He looked around and up at them.

“Can I, ask you something? Important.”

“Of course.”

“Priest.” Dirk started slowly, the name making him cringe. “He's a thing. He was born. And that's fine, that doesn't matter. He probably wasn't, meant to become what he did. But even after he, became that, he was able to talk to Bart. Without them wanting to kill him. Why?” Dirk looked at them with a hint of desperation, the lingering nightmare still in his eyes. They sighed, carefully pushing him up and away as they scooted back.

“You’re not going to like my answer.”

“You're the universe. I never have liked what you had to say.” They sighed.

“Osmund, wasn’t supposed to turn out the way he did. He had this, potential, that could have made him great. But there were, events, that happened in his life that made him bitter. Made him cruel. That’s not justification. It’s just what happened. His family, he just didn’t fit in. And so when Blackwing came along and offered to recruit him he took the opportunity.” They paused, looking down at their hands.

“He’s– he was, like you. Like Bart, and all the others. He was supposed to find people. To bring them to you. But he used it against the rest of you. He started hurting the rest of you. So, I tried again. I made Amanda. She was supposed to be, not the new Priest, but a new finder. I didn’t anticipate Blackwing. I didn’t anticipate a lot of things. Bart was never supposed to kill Priest, because they were supposed to help him. The way they help you. I didn’t account for humanities propensity to hate.”

Dirk gave something of a nod before averting his gaze.

“Right. Because that's not absolutely terrifying.” He unclenched his fists, not sure what to do with them. “If I may, what on earth would lead him to a life of literally torturing children? I'm going to be stuck with his, memory, forever. And now I get to find out that he was supposed to help me. That's … not comforting.” Dirk sank back into his ball, not looking back to to continue eye contact.

“It’s a complicated story, or well, I guess maybe not complicated. Osmund grew up, for at least part of his childhood, in a family that didn’t want him. He wasn’t like them. He was bullied and eventually his parents gave him away. It’s not a justification. Plenty of people have terrible childhoods and still become wonderful people. Like you. Like Amanda, and Farah. And so many others. But with him, it just, it broke him. Just a little. Enough for it to matter.” Friedverse frowned over at Dirk, reaching out and pulling their hand back at the last minute.

Dirk took a moment to respond.

“Do you regret it? Making him or, keeping him or whatever.” He opened his mouth, trying to find the right expression. “Do you regret, taking my panic attack? I mean- nevermind. Stupid question. Wrong question. Wrong, sorry...”

“I don’t. To be fair I didn’t know what regret was twelve hours ago, but, no. I don’t regret taking your pain. I wanted to help. And for a moment I did. Did I? I guess I haven’t actually asked.” They frowned.

Dirk stared at a ray of sunlight filtering through the morning fog as he nodded.

“This is perhaps the strangest conversation I've had.”

“Same.” They smiled lightly. “But did it help?”

“Yes. It did. Thank you, Friedverse. I think. I'm still not actually sure what dynamic you two have going here. But that's alright, I never know much of anything until I suddenly do.” Dirk chuckled quietly as the sunlight went away, and the air around them turned back to grey.

“It’s a mutual dislike. We’re figuring it out. But, I don’t regret what I did. Any of it. Even creating Priest. I regret what happened. How you suffered. How all of you suffered. You– you’re– you’re not my children, that’s not how it works, but, I want what’s best for you. I’ve known you your whole life, and it, hurts, that you’re unhappy.”

“Bit of a plot twist, I always am. Or, I used to be. It's different now, with Todd and Farah and the agency. And the pack. Everything keeps coming together for just a little bit before it falls apart again. That's nice, I suppose.”

Dirk frowned as he felt Todd stir somewhere, his access to him through their Bond still muted by something heavy. He shifted as a wave of something uncomfortable making its way out of his chest. It felt like, for a moment, whatever was separating him was weighing him down, failing to do something vital.

“Dirk? What’s wrong, what was that?”

Dirk shrugged, closing his eyes to take a breath.

“Todd. He's, awake somewhere. I can feel him. Or rather, he's not awake, no. Not that. But… in distress, maybe? I can't make it out, my-” Dirk grabbed his shoulder as a strange pain blossomed out from it, not quiet enough to actually hurt him, but enough to cause concern. “I think. My shoulder aches? Has he fallen?”

“I can’t see him. Are you able to feel his pain?”

“It was a rhetorical question, Mr. Friedverse. And yes, usually. Bonds do that. But something is keeping it muted, or hidden from me, or…” Dirk gripped his shoulder tighter. He was missing something.

“Is it possible that whatever is blocking me, is blocking you?” They asked, frowning.

“Possibly, I-” Dirk paused, his eyes flitting everywhere at once. “Oh. _Oh!_ Oh, gosh! I can't believe I missed it!” Dirk jumped to his feet, suddenly animated.

“Missed it? Wait, Dirk, missed what? What happened? Are you happy now?” Friedverse scrambled to their feet. Dirk laughed, smiling at them.

“Not happy, no. But smarter. Mr. Friedverse, I think I've solved a very big part of this case. It was obvious! Right before he was taken, Todd tried to contact me. He said something about…something. It's doesn't matter. But we need to get down to the apartment right away!”

“I can help with that.” Friedverse reached out, grabbing tight to Dirk’s wrist, and smiling as the apartment materialized around them. Dirk clapped his hands, getting the attention of everyone in the room.

“Right. Now. Everyone. You're never going to believe this!”

“Friedkin! I thought I said leave him alone.” Farah growled. They turned and shrugged.

“The universe told me not to listen to you?” They tried, garnering a deeper glare. Dirk snorted and waved his hand.

“Focus! I know something important!” He shouted, smiling over at Friedverse. “And we can thank the universe for once.”

* * *

**This Was Calculated, But Damn, Dirk Gently Is Bad At Math**

Dirk put his hands up, grinning widely, as he tried to quiet the room down. They obliged, lowering their volume to what Dirk deemed acceptable. Once he was sure they would be able to hear him, he out his hands on his hips.

“Everyone, I am _very_ happy to say that I've solved half the case!”

There was grumbling from around the room, and Gripps nodded his head.

“What'd you get, man!?” Vogel jumped from his place on the ground, eyeing both him and Friedverse with an excited expression. Dirk's smile widened.

“A lot, Vogel. Thankfully, the universe actually does say the right things every now and then. Did you know Priest is holistic? I didn't. Apparently, he's-”

“Brit.” Martin interrupted him before he could start rambling, his face darkening. “You wanna say what you found?”

“Oh, right, yes.” Dirk turned to Friedverse “Well, first off, they reminded me that something is muting or muffling or whatever-ing my bond with Todd, which just led to an absolute _explosion_ in my brain. Thanks for that.”

Friedverse nodded slowly, taken aback.

“Sure?”

“So, I got to thinking about bonds, which naturally made me think about werewolves which of course made me think about what happened earlier, with you, Vogel. The truth thing. You told me to do something, and I couldn't help but listen. Here, tell me to do something now.” Dirk waited with an expectant grin, and Vogel's expression faltered, hesitating.

“You sure, man?!”

“Most definitely.”

“Uh…” Vogel's eyes flitted to Friedverse. “Hit the universe again, Brit!”

Dirk turned in the spot, and before Friedverse could say anything, he'd slapped him. Hugo swore, and the universe frowned at both him and Vogel. Vogel gave a thumbs up.

“See? Whatever you tell me to do, Vogel, I have to listen to it. It's just, werewolf law or something. And that reminded me of Todd. Todd went, with absolutely no sign of struggle, with the God that the universe mentioned. What was his name? It's not important. What _is_ though is the fact that the shop was undisturbed! So I thought, and bare with me, what if, the god, is the one who bit Todd. Yes?”

Farah opened her mouth to speak, but Dirk put out his hand.

“Nope! Too late! Not done! I'm certain that's the answer, but that still doesn't solve _why_ he took Todd. What would anyone need him for? No offense but, he's my assistant. No one else's. Sort of how Ethan is yours, Bart.” Dirk gestured to Ethan, who was in the corner trying to persuade Bart into changing into clean clothes. “And then I thought, hey, Todd talked to me! While he was in the shop! I heard him! Something about Hel and witches and sacrifices and whatever. But what if that's it!? What if Todd _is_ the sacrifice! And if the god took Todd as a sacrifice, it's obvious that he's working with the witches!

“So, just a reminder. Todd was bitten by a god, the god is working with the witches, the god also happens to be the client that I turned down today, and the he took Todd to sacrifice him. Any questions?”

Amanda raised her hand slowly. Dirk smiled.

“Amanda!”

“How, did you come to this conclusion?” She frowned glancing around at the others to see if she had missed something. Dirk clapped his hands together, pointing to Friedverse.

“He, said a thing! And it reminded me of another thing! That led to something else, and then another one, and now here we are! I'm pretty sure I'm being quite clear on this.” Dirk frowned.

“How does knowing this help?” Friedverse frowned. “Like it’s helpful. But, we’re still facing off against a god. And we still can’t find the others.”

“Todd is kidnapped. Let me have this.” Dirk turned back to the group. “Someone! Isn't this still exciting or know, even if exciting isn't really the word we need!”

“No, it is.” Friedverse held up their hands, glancing around. “It’s just, okay, well, what’s the next step? I’ve never, been this, close to things before.”

“Do you _have_ to nag at the one thing I don't know?” Dirk sighed. “I am trying to be not sad!”

Friedverse sighed, biting down on their lip as they turned to Farah.

“What do you suggest? I can, project probabilities, but I need, a starting point.”

“Uh, we could, call Loki? Or, we can…” Farah glared at him. “We can go after the local coven, maybe. Would that work?”

“Perhaps. There’s, a three percent chance the local coven would be helpful. Loki less so. What about- no, that won’t work. But what if we- I thought of that. Maybe the store has something more?” They turned to Martin who had started frowning at them. Friedverse swallowed.

“Dirk. What about the store? Anything there?” They asked.

“We were already there. We could send someone, except for the _small_ fact that separating is barely an option right now. So no, I doubt it.”

“This is harder than I anticipated it being. No shit, Sherlock.” They mumbled.

“Were you expecting our cases to be easy, Mr. Universe man?” Dirk laughed softly, distant concern still in his eyes.

“No, it’s just, it’s different, from, my point of view.” They looked around the room.

“Welcome to the real world.” Amanda laughed.

“Yes it’s fairly annoying. Alright, we- we should like, take stock of the stuff we have. Like, weapons and stuff.” The universe sighed. They couldn’t argue with that. Amanda raised her hand again.

“Farah's got like, an arsenal. And we, the Rowdies, have a lot of bats. We also have Bart, who has a lot of random everyday weapons, so they also have an arsenal.” Amanda shrugged. “Is that a start?”

They smiled.

“That will definitely do.” They turned and waved a board into existence.

“Let’s write what we know, and go from there.”

* * *

**Ding Dong The Witch Is A Millennial**

Vogel had an idea.

It wasn't a good idea, per say, but it was an idea all the same. The others were always encouraging him to act whenever he got one of those, so really, he couldn't be blamed for this. If anything, it was Amanda's fault.

Probably.

Vogel had slipped out of the apartment as they wrote, his head clouded with a negative emotion. With Todd gone, Dirk was hurt, and Vogel didn't like it when he was hurt. Seeing Dirk hurt was just as bad as seeing one of the other Rowdies upset, and it made his frustrated. What was he even supposed to do about it?

He'd gotten the idea when he saw that Bart had dragged Ethan outside for a game. Ethan looked, not upset, but resigned to it, Bart literally dragging him by his sleeve last Vogel without a second though.

It was a bad idea.

But bad ideas were most certainly always a Rowdy idea.

“Hey! Guys! Wait!” Vogel bounced off of the wall, jumping forward to catch their attention. Bart turned, frowning.

“Vogel? What are you doing?” Ethan asked watching as Vogel raced over.

“I have like, a super big idea!” Vogel used his arms to show exactly how big the idea was so they they wouldn't misunderstand him. “Like, as big as the moon on, on Mars!”

He was going to be in so much trouble, but first he was going to make someone happy. Ethan glanced up back towards the apartment.

“Does Martin know you’re out here? Or Amanda?” He asked glancing at Bart who was grinning widely. Vogel bared his chest with pride.

“Nope!”

“Okay, well, the last time-” Bart smacked him in the stomach.

“Hush. Whats yours idea?” Bart asked, smiling over at Vogel. Vogel beamed at them.

“We're going to save Pup, man!” Vogel was bouncing in place, the energy unable to be contained in his body. Bart smiled and looked over at Ethan.

“Sounds fun. Whatcha think Eth?” Ethan was shaking his head.

“No, no. That’s what the others are doing. We should just-” Bart pushed him lightly and shook their head.

“It’s fines. Little Bird, wheres wes goin’?” Vogel turned on the spot, pointing down the road and in the opposite direction.

“That space guy said the shop has something! We're going to go there and, like, totally win!” Vogel jumped up, pumped him fist before glancing back around with a wide grin on his face. Bart smiled over at Ethan.

“Lets go Eth. Gots a feelin.” Bart started off down the sidewalk towards the store as Ethan protested.

“No, no. We have to tell the others. If they find out that I let you guys go off on your own. Martin will literally kill me.” Bart waved their hand from up ahead. Vogel laughed and pushed Ethan forward.

“Martin's cool, man! We'll be so cool!” Ethan groaned but stopped pushing against him. The walk to the store wasn’t long.

The route there was oddly energetic as Vogel went back and forth with Bart, and Vogel was dragging Ethan by the sleeve by the time they'd finally reached the last corner, still following Todd's scent. Bart was dragging behind, holding a rather intimidating looking knife, and pointing it at any passerby who happened to be unlucky enough to walk onto the street. Vogel slowed, his eyes flitting across the sidewalk to figure out if Todd had gone left or right. He turned to Ethan.

“Can you smell it, man?!”

“Vogel, you know that I can’t. I’m not like, well, any of you.” Ethan frowned slightly, his brows knitting together. Vogel shrugged, turning in a full circle as if it would help. It didn't, but it did make him happy.

“Just asking, weird name guy! You're boring!” He jumped up on his toes, staring at a car as it drove past them. Ethan sighed.

“Sorry to disappoint. What are we doing back here anyway? Didn’t you all already look here?”

Vogel shrugged, twirling the bat in his hands.

“They missed something! Like, totally! You know?!” He glanced behind them. “Keep up, Bart!” There was a grunting noise, and Vogel nodded, giving a thumbs up.

“I just, I don’t understand why we couldn’t bring the others, or at least Hugo. He can like, teleport us away if things get bad. Maybe. Probably.” Ethan continued to frown as he thought.

“Nah. I talked to the shape changing guy while you guys were talking boring stuff! They like that Hugo guy! They want him to stay! Why do you keep asking for him, man?”

“I don’t!” Ethan answered just a bit too quickly. He took a breath. “I don’t, I just think that having the universe literally on our side could be beneficial.”

“Beneficial. That's a word.” Vogel frowned for a second before shrugging. “He'll be cool! He's helping Dirk out!”

Vogel twirled suddenly, slamming his bat into a bike that was obviously parked for someone inside one of the stores on the street. Satisfied, he glanced back at Ethan.

“Can't figure out the way to the witch place!”

“But you were just there, can’t you, like smell– what am I saying. I know the way. Follow me.” Ethan took the lead and continued down the sidewalk, Bart and Vogel both picking up their pace. Bart had somehow appeared on Ethan's other side, letting the knife dangle in their hands.

“Hey Bart!”

“Heya guy. Heya Eth. Yous two alive still?” Vogel nodded, jumping up to give a victory yell.

“Yeah Bart, thanks for checking. We’re almost there.” One more block and they were standing outside the shop, a large piece of plywood in place of the window for the door.

“Your handiwork?” Ethan glanced over at Vogel. Vogel raised his bat, whooping loudly.

“Yeah man! Watch this!” Before Ethan could stop him, Vogel had kicked open the door, nearly taking it off of its highest. A tired looking shopkeeper glanced up, taking a moment to actually respond.

“Oh. Are you the ones who broke the stuff here?” Ethan glanced at Vogel and then at Bart and sighed.

“I’m not even gonna try, yeah, it was us. We’re looking for our friend. You seen him. Little guy, black hair.” The shopkeeper narrowed his eyes, but just shrugged. He looked exhausted.

“I work in a witch shop. That's like, half of our demographic.”

“Would have been hanging with the Norse god Fenrir. Can’t imagine he pops in too often.” Ethan said, watching as Bart tightened their grip on their knife. “These two are fairly annoyed and are looking for an, outlet.”

“You know what, you'd be surprised how often that guy comes here. Self absorbed piece of shit. What do you have weapons for?” He wasn't looking at Vogel, but instead was staring at Bart with a distant sort of alarm.

“Excellent question. Vogel, wanna give him a demonstration?”

“ _Hell_ yeah!” Vogel ducked under Ethan and past Bart, bringing down a whole shelf of what looked like bottled potions in a matter of seconds, and taking down a second one just for the fun of it. Bart wasn't paying attention; they hadn't taken their eyes off of the shopkeeper.

Vogel yelled in excitement.

“Huh. Those cost a lot money. My boss is probably going to kill me. Hopefully after my break.” The shopkeeper sighed.

“No see, that’ll be Bart. What are you thinking Bartine?” Ethan glanced over smiling. He would never admit this to the others, but he loved this bit. Bart gave him a quick glance, their face already having set.

“He's a bad guy.”

“Well, then I guess he’s all yours. Vogel, move.” Ethan glanced up at the youngest Rowdy as he smashed a display of quartz. Vogel frowned, but glancing at Bart, nodded after a moment of contemplation.

Bart threw their knife at the shopkeeper, but missed by a few inches. Ducking the blow, he stepped back, and for a second, everything seemed fine.

And then he took another step back.

The shopkeeper slipped on something that they couldn't see, yelling for a moment before their head hit the hard table with a sickening crack, a pencil embedded halfway into their head. They watched him fall behind the counter and onto the ground, and after a moment of silence, turned back to Ethan with a triumphant smile in their face.

“'Dat’s way too easy, Eth. Gotta find somethin’ bigger.” Bart looked happy though, and it put Ethan's heart at ease. A happy Bart was a semi-dangerous Bart, instead of a cold blooded murderer Bart. Ethan smiled lightly.

“Well, we’re chasing a god, so, there’s that to look forward to. Vogel, what did you guys do when you were here before?”

“I don't know, man! We kind of like, looked around! There wasn't anything-” Vogel paused, turning his head at an odd sort of sound coming from the desk.

It was a ringtone.

“Uh, what do we do?! Do we answer it! What if it's his ghost!” Vogel raised his bat, pouting it in the direction of the sound. Ethan walked forward and around the counter. The ringing was coming from the dead guy’s pocket.

“I highly doubt it’s a ghost.” He fished the phone out, but he’d missed the call. Vogel jumped up onto the desk, trying to get a better look.

“Dead guys have phones?”

“He, he’s newly dead. So yeah, still has a phone.” Ethan glanced down and frowned. “I don’t know why I thought reading the name would be helpful. Jennings. That’s a person we don’t know. Maybe we can–” The phone pinged again, a text bubble appearing on the lock screen.

“Northern State Recreation Site. Do you guys know where that is?”

“Uh, I think Boss talks about it sometimes! Like in his stories!” Vogel gestured widely. “Boss dude has awesome stories like that!”

“Dunno names. Just end up places.” Bart shrugged, picking up the broken glass on the floor and examining it.

“Okay, well we can look it up. It might not be anything but– Vogel, are you bleeding? You’re shirt is wet.” Ethan moved forward, around the desk, the phone still in hand.

“I got hit by some glass! It was rad, man! Went flying everywhere! Cross usually fixes it!” Vogel frowned at that last bit, looking down at the wet stain on his black shirt. Finally, he seemed to notice that he may in fact he in a little bit of pain. He looked more annoyed than anything else.

“Okay, well, we should head back to the others. We need to patch that up, and tell the others, and,” he paused, “Do you smell pine?”

Vogel nodded.

“Yeah. Smells bad to me. Where's it from?” He glanced around the room, the smell messing with his own senses. “Can't smell anything!”

“I think you must of hit a bottle of that stuff, which isn’t great. But it’s fine, let’s just go and get back to the others.” Ethan ushered them both toward the door.

Vogel didn't move from where he was sitting on the desk.

“Man, we can't do that! What's got you all mixed up?!”

“We just broke into a store. Murdered a guy. Damaged the youngest Rowdy. Had our traceable scents masked by some magic flower. And we’re hunting a god. I think we might want more than three people for this kind of thing.” Ethan said glancing over at Bart.

“Right?” He asked.

Bart shrugged.

“I dunno. Kinda want to stay. We're supposed 'ta be here to kill someone, Eth.”

“But we did that Bart. He’s over there, we stole his phone. There’s– there’s someone else coming isn’t there?” Ethan closed his eyes, dropping his head slightly. He stayed like that for a moment, taking slow breaths and finally looking up.

“Okay, fine. But if no one shows up, in an hour, we go back. Yeah?”

“You's gots it wrong, Eth. No one comin’.” They turned to the door, tilting their head. “Gotta go out.”

“Like a treasure hunt!?” Vogel's eyes lit up.

“Yeah, crazy guy. Exactly that thing.”

“Can this treasure hunt include the others? Because I think that they might want to know this thing, it seems like, an important. Thing.” Ethan glanced back and forth between the two of them.

“But we gotta save the Pup, man! I promised Brit! Gotta make Brit happy!” Vogel puffed out his chest, banging his bat onto the desk, cracks blossoming out from the impact site. “Let's do a treasure hunt!”

“Yeah!” Bart stalked forward, pulling the knife out of the wall.

“Martin is gonna kill me.” Ethan muttered heading towards the door. “Okay, well, we have to figure out where we’re going, and how we’re getting there. Ideas?” Bart glanced around.

“Walk.”

“Why not. Not like the day can get worse. Alright let’s go.” Ethan pulled out his phone quickly, opening up the maps app on his phone. After a few keystrokes he stopped shaking his head.

“No, we’re not walking. It’s like an hour and a half by car. Bart just, does the universe want us to maybe steal a car? Anything not to walk that far.”

“No way name guy!” Vogel jumped into the doorway, turning on his heels to face them. “Walking’s fun! We can get ice cream on the way! Fun stuff!”

“It says it will take ten hours if we walk. That’s, that’ll put us there at like 2 in the morning.” Ethan frowned. He wasn’t going to win against a Rowdy and Bart.

Bart grabbed Ethan's sleeve, pulling him forward.

“Walk. I wants the ice cream thing.”

“Yeah! Ice cream! Do we need money!?”

“Nah. We's gots it. Ice cream people don't gotta stay alive.”

“But the people with cars do?” Ethan grumbled as he followed the others down the street heading towards the freeway.

“Cars are loud.”

“And warm. And not walking. I– nevermind. The sun’s going to set in an hour. I’d like to be at least on the freeway before then. Ice cream is this way.”

There was a chorus is excited voices, Vogel and Bart bouncing off ideas on which ice cream flavor was the best. Bart apparently had no idea there was more than one flavor. Ethan sighed.

This was going to be a long day.

* * *

**Ken Adams Is A Little Bitch**

“He told you to babysit me? I didn't know you were qualified for childcare.”

Todd had been sitting in the room for what could have honestly been any stretch of time, stating blankly at Ken's keyboard as he typed. It hit him, after awhile, that Ken was probably the only source of entertainment he would get. Ever. So naturally, the only thing to do was to mess with him.

Todd grinned up at Ken. This was the best gift he could have been given, considering the circumstances. A free go at the guy who had Dirk kidnapped. Ken rolled his eyes, not taking the focus off of his computer. Adrien had made it very clear that Todd wasn't to read anything on the screens, nor sabotage Ken's work, while he was away. Ken hadn't seemed very pleased about this situation, either way.

“Yeah, well, I’m not entirely sure why you couldn’t just stay in your cell. But can’t argue with Adrien.” Ken continued to watch the screens, occasionally hitting a few keys and then frowning.

“Maybe he secretly hates you, dude. I mean, we don't, get along. And he put us in a room together.” Todd leaned back on the chair, frowning up at the ceiling. He had been in his cell for hours before this, and besides the kitchen, it was nice to see something other than the same white walls of his 'room’.

“Probably. He doesn’t really like anyone. You’re actually the person he’s been nicest too. Not that that’s a huge consolation.” Ken grumbled to himself as one of the monitors made a beeping noise.

“Jesus Christ, really? He almost knocked me out like twice. And strangled me two more times. The hell has he done to you?” Todd didn't like to imagine the fact that, creepy as Adrien was towards him, he was even worse to everyone else.

“Hm? Oh nothing. As far as I can tell showing any sort of interest means he likes you. If he ignores you he doesn’t care what happens. So I guess, I win in this scenario. Sucks to be you. Damn it.” He hit the keys harder as he glared up at one of the screens. Todd groaned.

If this was the last real human contact he was ever going to have, then he wasn't going to let Ken's attention be diverted without a fight.

“Adrien's been like, super creepy. Creepier than a normal Norse god. And way too close.” Todd glanced at Ken, who visibly sighed. “What? Jealous?”

“Of Adrien’s weird crush? No, that’s a you problem.” Ken turned slightly. “Or maybe it’s not a problem, who am I to judge.”

“I have a _boyfriend,_ Ken.” Todd sighed dramatically, spinning around in his chair. “Adrien is on thin ice. It's not a crush if he's making moves on when you're like, panicking. Or while you have a boyfriend. That's just creepy. Like I said.”

“Well Adrien is an immortal god who’s been around a couple thousand years. I highly doubt he cares how he gets any, as long he gets something. Stupid code.” He shoved the keyboard back and sighed. Todd smirked.

“Screw your code. I'm talking.” He sat up straight, watching the way Ken was grumbling at his keyboard. “Unless you want to talk about how Dirk and Bart are probably on their way with everyone else. You remember them, right? I mean, it's just _killing_ Bart, not being able to chat with you and all that shit.”

“I’m sure. They won’t be able to find us though. This place is covered in so much charm and rune magic it’s a miracle we can get internet. Even if they found you, and that’s a big if, the building is a labyrinth, they won’t find you.” Ken spun his chair to glare at Todd, who smiled back.

“Yeah. Because Dirk and Bart always end up in the wrong place. My bad.” Todd pushed his chair away, the space of the room a nice change from his cell. “I mean like, what would you even do if Bart cornered you, anyway man?”

“Probably nothing. It’s happened twice and I haven’t died. You know what they say, third time’s the charm.”

“Speaking of letting you go and all that.” Todd tilted his head backwards to Ken, raising his eyebrow. “How'd you get mixed up in all this? Last we saw you you were talking about the universe giving you a chance and, like, shitting yourself in a forest. You have a bad morning or something?”

Ken laughed and gestured toward the screens.

“I got hired, to help retrieve an old artifact from a museum. Turns out Adrien is a little apprehensive about doing jobs alone now, can’t imagine why.” He glared over at Todd. “He liked my work, explained what he was doing, and now we’re here.”

“Yeah, I think Loki left a charm on the museums in Seattle before he left? That's what Dirk said.” Todd sighed. “Still though, I mean, is this considered an upgrade or downgrade from Blackwing? At least here you aren't carrying on a legacy that, experimented on my actual boyfriend. And, most of my pack? What the hell made you think that's a cool idea?”

Todd spun around in the chair again, watching the way the room around him blurred. There wasn't much to do besides pester Ken. He couldn't even call out to Dirk without nearly passing out from the pain.

He wished Dirk would call out to him instead, even if he would have to report it later.

“Doesn’t matter if this is an upgrade or not. After the solstice there won’t be much of anything left. And I’ll be allowed to live in peace. I thought I understood the way the universe worked, thought I could control it, but I was wrong. So instead, I’m going to help it burn.” Ken smirked, sticking his foot out and catching Todd’s leg, sending him crashing to the floor. Todd yelled as he tumbled to the ground, hitting his head against a table leg. He glared up at Ken.

“Anger issues, man? You should see my therapist instead of trying to, like, kill me.”

“Not just you. Everybody. Easiest way to root out a virus is to wipe the drive and start over.” Ken turned back to the screens, clicking the mouse a few times. Todd rubbed the side of his head, his ears ringing.

“I, meant the chair thing, but that's pretty alarming.” Todd shook his head to clear it. “Where'd you get those morals from? Priest? Did his dead consciousness transfer to your shitty brain?” Ken laughed.

“Sure, that’s what we’re doing with Priest’s dead consciousness. You guessed it. Ten points to Gryffindor.”

“I'm not talking Harry Potter with you. You're too… something that isn't fun. There's a word for it, but my head hurts now, so.” Todd frowned.

Why was Ken laughing?

“Wait. Shit. Dude. Are you actually messing with Priest's dead body? Are you insane?”

“I prefer the term enlightened.” Ken continued to watch the screens.

The pit of Todd's stomach fell away, thinking about the type of things that Ken could do, equipped with Priest's dead body and the power of a whole coven. It was stupid to think that he would mess with life; he would need to tap into some sort of universe fuel station to do that, and that was impossible. Granted, Dirk had been brought back to life once, but Amanda had speculated that that was from someone who was already behind the scenes.

No, Todd was right. Ken couldn't bring someone back to life. Anyone who tried that was just asking to the universe to kick it's ass. Still, the thought of Dirk's terror at even the mention of Priest's name, his terror at the fact that Ken was doing something that involved that awful man, made Todd's stomach boil.

Ken was truly awful.

“You're cheery. Where'd you learn that? Asshole Blackwing camp? Or was it the camp that teaches you how to listen to shitty gods? You're like, sort of an awful person, man.” Todd leaned back into the table leg.

“Oh no.” Ken deadpanned, “Whatever will I do? The guy who’s gonna die tomorrow thinks I’m a bad person. If only I cared.”

“I am going to haunt you and ruin your life. I'm like, going to be one of those annoying cat ghosts. That knocks shit down or, whatever. Either way, I'm, still haunting you and your shitty personality.”

“It’s called a poltergeist. And as far as I understand it, the spell will literally shred your soul, so, best of luck with haunting anything.” Ken glared down at him.

“I'm stubborn and pissed. Perfect combination.” Todd glanced down at the wheels of Ken's chair as a grin spread across his face. Ken was going to hate him for this.

It was perfect.

Todd grabbed onto the legs of the chair and pushed it backwards, sending Ken flying into his keyboard. His chin hit the keys as the chair went out from under him, and Todd covered his mouth to stop himself from laughing too loudly as Ken fell to the ground.

“I'll give Adrien credit. This is a great last day on earth and all that.” Todd snorted to himself as his breathing calmed down, Ken propping himself up from his position on the floor.

“He told you you couldn’t hit me right?” Ken glared, pulling himself to his feet. Todd shrugged, still smiling.

“I didn't. I didn't hit you or kill you or mess with your computer. I followed his rules perfectly.” Todd gave a thumbs up at Ken. Who was he to care how much Ken hated him, if he was going to die anyway? He only wished he could tell Dirk about it.

As usual, he felt the familiar stir in his chest whenever he thought about Dirk's name. He sighed, pushing it down. He couldn't risk having to report something to Adrien.

Todd glanced up at Ken.

“Fantastic. So you won’t be able to do anything if I do this.” Ken kicked Todd’s knee, a resounding snap filling the room. Todd swore, swinging forward to grab his leg.

“ _Shit,_ man!”

“Or this.” Ken grabbed a handful of Todd’s hair and pull him towards the door, shoving him roughly against the wall next to the door. Todd panicked, kneeing him in retaliation, and right away his legs began to burn as if it was submerged in fire. It was just like one of his pararibulitis attacks that he used to have, except he could only make it go away until he stopped moving against Ken.

“Now you seem clever. What do you think I’m going to do with the door?” Ken asked, grabbing the handle and pulling it open.

“Something that you, totally shouldn't do because, hey, I'm gonna die anyway, maybe don't- don't do that. Ken. Man.” Todd grabbed onto his arms, bracing against the wall as he prepared to face the burning again, should be have to hit or kick him. Ken smiled.

“You’re right. You’re going to die tomorrow. I won’t be able to do this anymore. And you know what Adrien explained to me? About you? Guess. I want you to guess.” Ken grabbed tightly to Todd’s arm, moving it out of the door, to stand just in the hallway.

“Maybe we should, play a card game instead. This one is so, uh, not, so last year.”

“Guess, Brotzman. Or it will get worse.” Ken growled, still holding Todd’s outstretched arm. Todd gave a nervous laugh.

“Worse than your personality? Doubtful.” Todd’s mouth went into a line as he grimaced at Ken's expression. This day was quickly taking yet another awful turn, and of course, Ken was to blame. Typical. Was this worse than Adrien's earlier excursion in the kitchen? It was too early to tell.

Ken sighed, gripping the door handle with one hand and Todd’s arm with the other.

“Wrong answer.” He slammed the door as shut as it would go with an arm in the way. Todd screamed as he let go of Ken to hold his own arm, but Ken hadn't reopened the door yet. He grabbed what he could of his arm, breathing heavily as the throbbing rocked his entire body.

“Shit. Goddammit. Shit. Ken. Let it, go man!” Ken pushed the door back open and crouched down next to Todd as he fell, he eyes cold.

“He told me all about how your bond works. How if you’re in pain, Dirk feels it. Now, the wards and runes and charms and that shit block a lot of that, but, if the pain is sharp enough, he’ll feel it. Should we test it? See how long it takes for him to notice?”

Todd gasped for air, cradling his arm as he sprawled against the wall. He scowled up at Ken, regretting that he couldn't at least smack him.

“Jesus, fuck you, Ken.” Todd breathed heavily, his focus drawn to the pain in his arm. “Dirk's felt worse than your shitty door. Just, fuck you, man. You, suck. Shit. That hurt.”

“Do you think that it will hurt more for him when you die than when he did? Adrien told me it’s like your soul being split in two. What do you think it’ll feel like for him when your soul gets shredded?” Ken smirked, glancing down at Todd’s dislocated shoulder. Todd laughed, shaking his head.

“Go screw yourself. I'm not above kicking you again. I have a pretty good angle this time.”

“Go ahead. Something tells me, that I can get more blows on you than you can on me. You may not like Adrien, but he’s more powerful than a regular werewolf. And think of Dirk. What will he think if I cut off your hand? Or break you femur? Think he’ll feel that? I could always take you out to the road. There aren’t any wards out there. He’ll definitely feel that.”

Todd shook his head again, dropping his eye contact with Ken. He closed his eyes. He couldn't hurt Dirk more than he was already going to.

“That’s what I thought. So, if you’re done, I have work to do. If you talk, about anything, again, I will start with your fingers and work on to the larger bones. Are we clear?” Ken smiled.

Todd glared up at him, cringing as the movement made his arm throb.

“Guess we'll find out in a day.”

“I guess we will. In the meantime. I have a god to find and a resurrection to coordinate. Sit there, quietly. And I won’t tell Adrien about this fun little time we had.” Ken stood, slamming the door closed and grabbing his chair.

Todd focused on the doorknob as he felt his body try to repair itself, his arm going numb as it assessed the damage. Being a werewolf had its perks, he supposed, besides the fact that it was going to cause him to be sacrificed. Now that the pain in his arm was out of the way, he could focus on the other things in his mind. He wondered if the others were even looking for him.

Judging by the way Ken spoke, it was unlikely they would get here in time.

* * *

**Hotel California**

Todd blinked as the bright room came into focus, momentarily blinding his vision. He was standing, staring at a broken piano that had been snapped in half. In fact, looking around, most everything in the white, luxurious room was broken. Besides the main point, he also noted that it was covered in blood.

Todd was in the penthouse suite of the Perriman Grand.

He looked down at his clothes; he was wearing his old bellhop uniform. When had he put it on? He stepped backwards, frowning at the pool of blood at his feet, sticking to the soles on his shoes. Todd knew exactly how, and why, he was was here.

Given the strange landscapes of Todd's dreams in the past year, he shouldn't have been surprised to see Dirk sitting on the bed.

Dirk was wearing the same outfit he had been dressed in when he first broke into Todd's apartment. His tie was speckled with ice cream cones, and his battered yellow jacket looked brighter than ever in the strange dream lighting. Dirk waved at him when he saw Todd looking, his smile brightening as he swing his feet.

“Dirk?”

“Hello, Todd.”

“Uh…” Todd took a step forward, narrowing his eyes at Dirk's bright, smiling figure. “Why are you, in my dream? In the hotel? How did I even fall asleep?” Todd frowned, asking those questions more to himself than anyone else. Dirk shrugged, his face still animated.

“Not entirely sure. I think it has something to do with that wolf though. He is dreadful.” Dirk said, still smiling. Todd gave a nervous laugh, trying to find a place to stand where he wouldn't track blood too badly.

“Yeah, I know. He like, kissed me. Really awfully. And, kidnapped me. That also happened.”

“You’ve had quite the day. Or days. Time is wibbly. Are you going to mention that whole, kissing thing, when you see me?” Dirk raised his eyebrow.

“I'd actually like to, never think of it again. Thanks.”

Dirk threw up his hands.

“Consider it forgotten. So, what brings you here?” Todd snorted.

“To my own dream? Probably sleep. Though I'm, not sure why we're at the hotel.” Todd glanced around the room; thankfully, none of the bodies that had been involved in the case's original murder were lying around. The blood seemed to be multiplying in size, though, reaching and pooling in Todd's direction.

“Everything is connected. I’m sure there’s a reason. Are you afraid of hotels? Oh, or perhaps, you’re afraid of red stains. Could that be it?” Dirk tilted his head. Todd stared at him for a moment.

“Yeah, that's not it.” Todd crossed his arms, frowning. “I don't know. This is where it all started, I mean, right?”

“Perhaps you’ve come full circle. The beginning and the end. The blood certainly does seem to to want to flood everything. You’ll have to snake around it to not get any on your shoes.” Dirk pointed towards the pools which were slowly moving towards Todd. Todd rolled his shoulders, grimacing at the moving puddles.

“The blood and the murders. They're just… does this feel wrong? Where are the bodies? It's, missing. They're missing.” He took a deep breath.

“Maybe they left to raise a little hell. You know bodies, and disappearing.”

“Bodies. Dead bodies.” Todd's mouth fell open a small bit as he raised his hand, and Dirk nodded encouragingly. “Dead bodies walking around. Didn't Ken day something about Priest's dead… uh, whatever?”

“Not resting in peace soul? Probably. What do you think is happening?” Dirk smiled. Todd shook his head, sidestepping an approaching pool of blood.

“He was talking about Priest's consciousness. Using it or something. And Adrien! He said! I said that I would rather fight Priest, and _he_ said to be careful what I wish for!” Todd paused, pointing at Dirk. “That's why you're here. You're the, detective, or whatever! And this is a, mystery? It's something!”

“But I’m not. If I were really here, we wouldn’t be worried about any of these things. We’d be together. You’re clever, you have all of the pieces. Walk through it. What do you know?”

“I know that the universe is seriously messing with me right now.” Todd bit his lip, closing his eyes to ground himself. Dirk waited on the bed, not saying a word.

Todd exhaled.

“Priest was the beginning for you, Dirk. He was where you started. And this _hotel,_ is where we started. So… I'm being brought back to the beginning?” Todd narrowed his eyes, his frown deepening. “But why the beginning?” Todd's voice devolved into a whisper.

“Every beginning has an end. Like a snake eating its own tail. Perhaps you are meant to find your end here. Or the end of all things? That sounds far more sinister.” Dirk said, watching Todd carefully.

“Maybe…” Todd glanced down at the blood, tryinh it's best to reach him at it's snail pace. “But the blood, look. The blood is what helped start this. Sort of. And it's… Okay. Okay. So, Adrien and Ken have Priest's consciousness or whatever, and now the beginning of all of this is trying to reach me? That's… not very clear.”

Todd thought that maybe the universe really did just hate him.

“You’re making assumptions. Do you _know_ that they have his consciousness or could they have something else. What good is a hunter to a god?” Dirk asked.

“But Adrien needs to find something, right? His siblings? And Ken isn't enough. Ken doesn't strike me as the type to lie about having plans for a dead psychopath, Dirk.”

Todd groaned, pulling the shirt away from his chest. The room was much too hot.

“Maybe he’s not dead. How sure are we that he’s dead? Dead like me?” Dirk asked. Todd sighed.

“Farah shot him like, point blank. But people can be brought back. You were.”

“Farah shot Suzie. That didn’t exactly stick.”

“And neither did your death, either!” Todd ran his hands around his neck, breathing deeply in frustration. “Could they… could they, do it? Bring Priest back? They wouldn't. Why would they? Priest is a hunter. They need a hunter though… and the blood…”

Todd make a desperate sound through his gritted teeth.

“Sherlock Holmes observed that once you have eliminated the _impossible_ then whatever remains, however improbable, must be the answer. I, however, do not like to eliminate the _impossible_. It sounds to me, that, to get what they want, they will attempt something impossibly stupid.” Dirk said, glancing down at the blood. Todd followed his gaze, and stumbled backwards towards Dirk as he found himself finally stepping in it. The blood tracked all the way to the bed.

Todd landed next to Dirk, staring off blankly to the other side of the Penthouse.

“Shit. You don't think that they…” Todd trailed off.

“I don’t think. You do. And I have found that you are often correct. Even if it takes you a little longer to get there.” Dirk bumped up against his arm, smiling. Todd tried to glare at him, but upon looking at his face, gave up.

Shit.

“They're going to do it. They're going to try. That's what the spell is for. The sacrifice and all that. Shit.” Todd stood up quickly, walking out into the blood that was flooding the floor surrounding the bed. “You're going to freak if they do. In real life. You're going to be… this is, so messed up.”

“Definitely. It is. And what’s worse, you broke your promise.” Dirk said, frowning. Todd turned his head, his face falling.

“Promise?”

“That you’d never leave. That he wouldn’t be able to get me again. That I was safe. I told you this would happen, didn’t I?” Dirk continued to frown, watching Todd carefully.

“He is not getting you!” Todd snapped at Dirk, his voice a little louder than intended. “And I'm not leaving! I just, have to find a way to leave. Or something. I can't just let myself die if Priest is going to come back. And if I don't die, there's no sacrifice, and they can't do it anyway. Right? Why do I feel like I'm wrong.”

“Because they can just find another wolf. They don’t need you, you’re just, convenient. Would you really be okay with someone else dying in your place to keep a promise?” Dirk asked.

“No one should be dying in the first place, Dirk! I'll just, not listen to Adrien or something. Yeah? No, that’s stupid.” Todd swore at himself, stomping in the blood.

“It is. What if he told you to kill yourself? Would you ignore him? I would just be stuck doing what you couldn’t and we both know how my mental state is.” Dirk sighed.

“This is so fucked-” Todd paused, frowning. He narrowed his eyes.

Something felt wrong.

“Dirk?”

“Yes, Todd?”

Todd looked down at his shirt, where a blossoming blood stain had suddenly appeared. He groaned, sliding down into the pool at his feet, clutching at his stomach. He couldn't move.

“Dirk.” His breath felt hot, like it was on fire. Dirk sighed.

“See? You lied. And I’ll be alone. And Adrien will win. You can’t stop a god.”

Todd wanted to tell him that yes, he could, he could stop whoever the hell he wanted. All he got out was a small whine though, and as he reached towards Dirk, he felt his body seize up and fell face first into the blood.

“Dirk.”

“Todd, you have to wake up. Don’t forget to say goodbye.”

“Dirk…”

Todd clenched his eyes shut, moving his hands to cover his head from the harsh lighting of the Penthouse. His whole body felt like it was on fire.

Then suddenly, the blood was gone.

* * *

**Why The Hell Didn't We Use Bricks**

Todd registered Ken's voice calling to him, and he blinked awake, uncurling from the ball he had made in his sleep. Todd took a deep breath as his lungs stopped compressing in, and he realized with a start that he was leaning against a wall. Ken was standing above him, his arms crossed.

Todd stared.

“Are you okay? You’ve been crying for like ten minutes. It’s really annoying.” Ken said, glaring down at him. Todd grabbed at his stomach, finding nothing but a dull, distant pain in his shoulder. He took a deep breath, looking up at Ken.

“Priest.”

Ken frowned.

“What about him? Or do you want one as like a last rites kind of thing?” Todd narrowed his eyes, shaking his head as he tried to grab something along the wall to pull himself up.

“Out of all of the stupid things you've done, this has to top the list, Ken. Priest? Seriously?” Todd grimaced as he wobbled on his feet, blinking as his vision went dark for a second.

“How did you– it doesn’t matter, it literally won’t be anything you need to worry about tomorrow.” Ken glared at him, crossing his arms.

Todd laughed.

“If I come back, I hope I get to kick your ass.”

“That’s a mighty big ‘if’ there Brotzman.” Ken turned back towards his desk.

“Fine. I'll have Bart kick your ass. Or the Rowdies. Your pick.” Todd called after him, glaring at his head. Ken paused, looking back at him.

“Well, for that to work you’d have to talk to them, and you can’t do that without putting yourself in amazing pain. So, by all means, call for help. Ask your little Svlad for help. See what happens.” Ken smirked.

“Well I'm dying in a day, right?” Todd smiled back, his expression ever so slightly hysterical. Todd pushed his subconscious as far as he could in Dirk's direction, and clenched his fists as the fire exploded in his head.

“Hear that, Dirk? Ken is real excited to see you all. Make sure to tear his arms off after I die tomorrow.” Todd screeched, falling onto the floor as he clutched his head in his hands. He could feel Dirk closer than ever, almost next to him. The bond had never been this powerful before. He could even hear Dirk's panicked voice as the world around him clouded.

Todd gasped for air as the moment ended, and the sharp reality was brought into dizzying focus. He grabbed at his chest for air.

“Good job. Really great show. So, have fun with broken fingers or whatever. I’ll be over here.” Ken turned back to his computer. Todd stared up after him, closing his eyes and falling the rest of the way to the floor so that he could cover his head. At least having broken fingers would mean that he tried.

Todd was laying face first on the floor, still shaking from the fading fire in his head, when he heard the door open.

Of course.

Todd didn't have to glance up to know that it was Adrien; he could hear his humming. He heard Adrien walk in, stopping a few steps away from Todd's head. He still refused to look up at him. Adrien sighed.

“So, I see that today went just super for you.” He said evenly. Todd grunted on the ground, debating how much trouble he would get in if he flipped him off.

“Right, well, Ken? How many fingers do I get to break?” Adrien smiled over at Ken, who glanced up.

“I’m just not sure Adrien. Todd, what do you think?” Ken asked, smirking down at Todd.

“I think, you're an asshole.” Todd spoke from where he was laying, his voice muffled by the floor below him. He heard Adrien chuckle.

“Right, so five. Also his left shoulder is a little, sore. I’m sure it could use some, attention.” Ken smirked turning back to the screen. Todd decided that, should he get out of this alive, he was most definitely having Bart go after him. It was the least they could do.

“Five, wow. That is quite a lot of misbehaving. Well, thanks for the help. Todd, follow me.” Adrien turned and headed back into the hall. Todd didn't respond as he got to his feet, trailing after Adrien. This was such a typically him thing to do. Adrien, on the other hand, still retained his pleased and pleasant demeanor.

He led Todd back down the hall and towards the large open space, it wasn’t a terribly long walk, but Todd didn’t love the idea of what was at the end of it. They reached the door and Adrien held it open for Todd, gesturing inside. Todd stared blankly at him, still tired, as he walked into the room.

“What escaped you from the instructions I gave you this morning?” Adrien asked, walking to the center of the room. Todd shrugged.

“Ken's an asshole.”

“Interesting point. Let me offer this counterpoint; I don’t care. What was unclear about my instructions? I want to know, for later.” Adrien smiled.

“Nothing. I just don't really care to follow them. It makes Ken, jump. And, you kind of suck. So.” Todd gestured vaguely, frowning at the ache in his shoulder. He was too exhausted for this. He'd barely even gotten much sleep, anyway.

“You look tired. Would you like to sit down?” Adrien smiled, moving forward slightly.

“Kind of feels like a trap, so. I'm cool.”

“Well, you’re not wrong.” Adrien hooked his heel behind Todd’s leg and wrapped his arm around his chest, sending him to the ground with a hard thunk. Adrien buried his knee in the center of Todd’s chest and smiled down at him.

“Comfortable?” Adrien smirked.

Todd groaned, grabbing at his chest to try and find the air, the wind having been completely knocked from his body. He wanted to tell Adrien that, hey, good question, but he couldn't take a big enough breath to actually mutter the words.

“Did you speak with Dirk today?” Adrien asked, pushing his knee hard against Todd’s chest. Todd launched forward, sprawling further onto the ground and biting down on his tongue. The taste of blood filled his mouth. He took a breath, shutting his eyes.

“No.”

Adrien stood, and paced around Todd.

“Why do I feel like you’re lying?” Adrien kicked Todd in the stomach, sending him backwards across the smooth floor. Todd's head slammed against the back wall, and Adrien only seemed to become happier as Todd cried out.

“I'm not.”

Adrien stalked forward, his eyes narrowing.

“So, if I told you to tell me the truth, I would get the same answers?” Adrien asked, stopping just out of Todd’s reach. Todd gave a breathless laugh, his vision spinning from the blow to his head.

“You're like, killing me in a day. Who cares.”

“I’m hearing, ‘No Adrien, the answers would be different.’ Stand up.” Adrien took a couple steps back. Todd grimaced as he pushed himself to his feet; his whole body was aching, and he stumbled back a few steps against the wall.

“You want to be free? This is your chance to try. Fight back.” Adrien smirked. Todd's breathing came in ragged gasps. Adrien was playing with him; they both knew that Todd could barely even stand. He managed to raise his still healing arm to flip him off.

“Oh, that’s right. I forgot. People don’t fight, not anymore. Let me show you what I learned when I was young.” He moved forward and kicked out, landing a hard blow on Todd’s hip, sending him back to the floor. Todd caught himself, pain sparking in his still injured shoulder. He swore under his breath, rolling over onto his back to grab at his hip. His teeth rubbed tightly against each other to stop him from making noise.

“Is this how the modern Fenrisulfr acts? You talk a big game, but when presented with the opportunity to bite with your bark, you fall, and crumble. You are a pitiful excuse for a bond. Your Dirk Gently should be ashamed.” Adrien growled.

“I'm not stupid enough to fight you, Adrien.” Todd spit the blood from his tongue out of his mouth, glaring up at him. “That would just make it worse for him.”

“Really? Not stupid enough to fight back, but stupid enough to disobey me? That doesn’t seem like good planning. You know as well as I that pain passes along the bond. You chose to ignore me, knowing the consequences. _You_ are to blame for his pain, not me.”

Todd didn't doubt it.

“Bite me, you asshole.”

“Gladly.” Adrien gripped Todd up by the front of his shirt, turning him and holding him tightly against his chest. Todd squirmed but he couldn’t break free, grabbing at Adrien's fists to try and push them away. Going to take a breath, Adrien pushed back harder, and Todd stopped trying to breathe for fear that his ribs would break from the pressure of Adrien's grip.

Adrien sunk his teeth into Todd’s wounded shoulder, hitting the collar bone, and completely ignoring the fact that he had just bitten through Todd’s shirt. Todd couldn't help but scream, slumping in Adrien's grip. He grabbed at the area near his shoulder, his eyes clenched tightly to stop the tears.

Adrien released him, letting him fall to the floor at his feet. He moved around him, glaring down at him as blood dripped from his mouth and ran down his chin.

“Would you like to try anything else? Or are you going to listen to me?” He asked.

Todd didn't answer, trying to stop the pain in his shoulder. Somewhere far away, he could feel Dirk panicking, and it only made the terror that Todd was experiencing all that much worse. Adrien frowned.

“Are you having another panic attack? Really? I think I did bite a broken person.”

“Fuck you.” Todd gasped for air as he spoke. “I can panic whenever the hell I want.”

Adrien rolled his eyes.

“Relax. Stop panicking. Honestly, it’s ridiculous.”

Todd felt Dirk's presence get farther away as the tension in his chest lifted. He was in far too much pain to even be able to think about disobeying Adrien now. His head fell back against the wall, eyes still closed.

“Now, let’s try again. Did you talk to Dirk today?” Adrien had moved forward, standing next to Todd’s hand. Todd opened his eyes, staring up at him with tired eyes.

“Yeah. I did.”

“Interesting, because earlier, I seem to remember you said no. I wasn’t hearing things, was I Todd?” Adrien picked up his foot and rested it carefully on Todd’s hand. Todd shook his head.

“I lied.”

“And why, pray tell, did you think that was wise?” He pushed down lightly, increasing the pressure on Todd’s hand. Todd only grimaced, blinking slowly.

“I didn't. I, didn't.” Everything around Todd was spinning. He was too tired. There was no way he could keep doing this.

“You knew it was a bad idea, and yet you did it anyway. Very interesting. Tell me, were you thinking about Dirk when you decided to disobey me? Were you thinking about the pain he would be in right now, not knowing what’s wrong, but knowing that something was?” Adrien pushed down harder. Todd realized he was crying silently again.

“No.”

“But I thought he was your soulmate? I thought you did everything with him in mind? Tell me. Do you know what it’s like to lose a bond, Todd?”

“Don't. Adrien.” Todd closed his eyes as the old, painful memory resurfaced. The memory of losing Dirk, of feeling him fade into nothing. It was the worst thing he had ever experienced.

“Your heart beat gives you away. You do know. He died didn’t he? I bet that was terrible for you. Now, imagine how he’ll feel. Imagine what it will feel like for him, when your soul is ripped from your body, and scattered into a thousand pieces. You won’t even make it to the hereafter. You’ll just stop existing. What do you think that will feel like?” Adrien pushed down harder, Todd felt his knuckles pop. He cried out again, whimpering quietly.

“I get it. I get it. Stop talking.”

“I don’t think you do. Because if you did, we wouldn’t be having this conversation. If you had, even an iota of understanding, you would have listened to me in the first place. Have you worked out who I am yet? I know you’re smart. But have you figured it out?”

Todd peeked up at Adrien, who was smiling. He banged his head back against the wall, diverting his gaze.

“I fucking hate you Norse assholes.” Todd spoke through his teeth, the pain in his hand slowly taking over his thought process. Adrien chuckled, rolling the weight of his foot slightly.

“Oh well, that’s easy. I meant my name. Who I am. Tell me, Todd, who do you think I am?” Adrien leaned down, his face hovering near Todd’s forehead. Todd frowned at the way the name was forced up his throat.

“Fenrir.”

“Very good. I am the great wolf, a god of destruction, the one who will slay Odin and bring about the end of the world. And you, thought that you could, what? Outsmart me? Beat me at my own game? I created you, and I can end you. But I won’t because I am merciful. But mercy, comes through pain. Twenty-five pounds of pressure per square inch.” He brought his foot up and stomped down on Todd’s hand, hearing several snaps and cracks. Todd screamed as he tried to pull out of Adrien’s reach, only making the pain worse. He couldn't speak for want of the pain to leave him.

Adrien lifted his foot and moved around to stand in front of Todd. Todd was cradling his hand in his lap, his face screwed up with the throbbing that made his whole body tremble.

“Kneel.”

Todd didn't let go of his hand, even as he felt his body obey Adrien's command. It was like he was floating just above his own body, the pain muting momentarily as he watched Adrien smirk down at him.

“Disobey me again, and I will personally go and retrieve Dirk, and then kill him, in front of you. Am. I. Clear?” Adrien asked, wiping the blood from his mouth on the back of his sleeve. Todd coughed, the blood spewing onto the ground and down the front of his shirt as he gazed up at him.

“Yeah.”

“Yes, _what_?” Adrien raised an eyebrow.

“Yes, _Fenrir.”_

Adrien took a deep breath, a smile stretching across his face.

“Now that, is some praise I could get used to.”

The pain from Todd's stomach increased, and he fell over onto the ground as it pulsed through his body. He felt himself curl up, moaning.

“Stand up.”

Todd took an unsuccessful breath, trying to use his uninjured hand to push himself up. A sob shook his body as the pain pulsed through him, and he ended up back on the ground, the burning sensation setting his entire body on fire. He couldn't get up. He couldn't. How could Adrien ask him to do that?

“I said, stand up.” Adrien took a step closer, a growl slipping into his voice. Todd moaned, breathing heavily.

Stupid Adrien. And his stupid orders. The whole world was spinning on its head. Was he going to throw up? Maybe. Possibly. He didn't know.

“Forget it. You’re positively useless.” Todd felt Adrien grip the front of his shirt as he pulled him off the ground. The torn fabric of his shirt scraped harshly against the bite mark on his shoulder. Todd moaned again, this time in panic.

Bad. Whatever was about to happen next, Todd knew it wouldn’t end well.

Adrien moved his hands down from the front of Todd’s shirt to around his middle and then the world flipped. He wasn’t entirely sure what had happened, but the increased pain in his middle suggested that Adrien had thrown him over his shoulder. Opening his eyes briefly confirmed this. Todd was staring at the ground, bit he closed his eyes again tightly as the pain in his shoulder spiked. He grabbed onto Adrien's arm to keep from falling, his other injured hand dangling uselessly.

This didn't feel good.

Adrien carried him out of the room, and the swaying made Todd feel like he was going to be sick. He groaned loudly; surely, his head was going to explode. The panic built up in his stomach, threatening to overwhelm him.

“Oh stop complaining. This wouldn’t have happened if you had listened to me in the first place. Can’t handle a little bit of pain?” Adrien chided, the crooked smile etched into his words. Todd mumbled incoherently. Everything felt fuzzy as the anxiety built up.

Something was wrong. Everything was wrong. Adrien was wrong.

Todd was wrong.

He pushed against Adrien's shoulder. This was wrong. It was bad. He couldn't _think._

“Are you able to walk yet or do I still have to continue to carry you? Too weak to even heal properly.” Adrien huffed, tightening his grip around Todd’s waist. Todd shook his head.

“Stop, that's-” Todd paused closing his eyes again. There was too much going on. He pulled at Adrien's sleeve.

“Stop? Oh, well since you asked so nicely.” Adrien’s grip tightened around Todd’s waist as his free hand gripped onto his leg. Todd wasn’t aware of the precise movement, but the next thing he knew he was staring at the ceiling, a chorus of new pains ringing in his head.

“How’s that? Better?” Adrien was standing over him, smirking down. Another moan escaped Todd as he went to feel his head.

“What the, hell, man…” He blinked. The world was still spinning on its axis, more violently than before. Adrien didn't seem to be entirely unaware of this.

“Well, that’s rather rude. How about I teach you some manners.” Adrien’s hand clamped tightly to Todd’s throat as he dragged him towards the wall of the hallway. Todd cried out and struggled against Adrien’s grip, his hands clawing against the fabric of Adrien’s jacket. They reached the wall and Adrien’s hand vanished, leaving Todd slumped in a sitting position and gasping for air.

He scratched at his throat, trying to find way to breathe properly. The anxiety was only making it worse, and honestly, it was probably half of the reason he couldn't walk. He cringed away from Adrien, grimacing as he tried to regain a normal breathing pattern.

Adrien crouched on Todd’s left side, looking him over disapprovingly.

“Definitely broken. What did you do to get yourself to this point? Drugs? Bad diet? You must have done something.” Adrien carefully brought his hand up to Todd’s shoulder, giving it a lite squeeze. A whimper came from him as he tried to shuffle away.

“Mm, no just, leave me alone.” His voice was low, staring at the ground to try and get a grip on himself.

“Leave you alone? But I can help you. You need my help, don’t you?” Adrien chuckled as he ran his hand down to Todd’s hand, the bruising beginning to darken the skin.

“Let me fucking die man.”

“Tomorrow. I promise. But for now, give me your hand.” Adrien smiled, holding his hand out, waiting.

Todd's whole body was shaking.

“Why?”

“Why? Do I need to remind you what happens when you fail to listen?” Adrien raised an eyebrow, his hand still outstretched. Todd still didn't look up.

Stupid, stupid Adrien.

His hand felt even worse as he let Adrien take it. An easier option would have been to just have passed out ages ago. But of course, the universe wouldn't let him. Naturally.

Adrien frowned down at his hand, carefully running his fingers over the bruising.

“It’s a shame really. Hope you weren’t left handed.” Adrien chuckled, glancing up briefly. “As long as you're not weak it will heal properly. Do you think it will heal properly?”

“I don't know man just, shit.” The way he was looking at his hand was only making it feel worse, and he instinctively pulled it back to cradle it. His whole left arm was hurting so bad that it was almost like he wasn't feeling it at all.

This was okay.

“Did I say you could move your hand? Are you really that bad at listening? Hand, now.” Adrien moved his palm forward, frowning up at Todd. He pushed away, holding his hand tightly in his lap.

It was okay. Really, it was okay.

This was absolutely fine.

Adrien rolled his eyes and brought his hand down on Todd’s knee, watching him carefully.

“You have a decision to make, do you want to do what I say, or do you want to be wrong?” Adrien’s grip tightened slightly on Todd’s knee as he waited.

“I'm not- I'm, I'm…” Another tremor shook his body. “What?”

“A bad listener and stupid. Give me your hand, or I will continue what I was doing with your knee. Is that clear enough for you, or would you like it slower?” Adrien’s grip tightened on his knee and Todd could feel his nails beginning to dig into his skin.

Todd, for the record, did try to give him his hand. He really didn't want Adrien to continue. As soon as he lifted his hand though, the pain intensified, and he dropped it again with a loud cry as it shot through the rest of his body. Seperate from the rest of his trembling body, his hand was shaking furiously. He doubted he could actually move his fingers if he wanted.

He was barely able to contain another cry.

“Knee it is, then.” Adrien’s nails dug into the side of Todd’s knee, pushing under his kneecap. Adrien smirked.

“Adrien Adrien wait wait!” Screaming wasn't helping Todd. He knew this, naturally, because he already was. All it did was make Adrien's smile wider. He tried to grab at him with his free hand, but wasn't even able to get up off from slumping against the wall. “Wait wait wait…”

Adrien’s grip loosened and he smiled.

“Are you going to listen? Or shall we continue? See how long it takes to pop your knee out of place. Knowing you, it will probably be ridiculously easy.” Adrien’s nails were still digging into his skin, but the pressure had eased.

“Stop stop I'm, I'm sorry man just- fuck. Fuck.”

If the universe wanted him dead, it was sure taking its time.

“Sorry? Whatever for? You’ll have to be specific, there’s so many things.” Adrien’s eyes narrowed as he smiled, his hand still clamped around Todd’s knee. “Are you sorry that you’re weak? Or perhaps you’re sorry that you’re a broken excuse for a person? Or maybe it’s for not listening? You are so very bad at that. Which is it, Todd?”

Todd mumbled under his breath, trying to focus on something else. Anything else. Something besides Adrien. Everything in him wanted to try and rip away, but all that would result in was something broken, probably. Not that it would matter.

“I'm sorry.”

“I’m sure you are. I’m sure there’s a lot you have to be sorry for in your life. Anything in particular weighing on your mind, or just, an overall ‘sorry for existing’ type thing?” Adrien’s grip tightened again, sending a new spark of pain up Todd’s leg.

“I didn't mean to lie. I'm sorry.”

In all honesty, Todd wasn't talking to Adrien. He wasn't sure who he was talking to, really. Maybe it was Dirk, maybe it was Amanda, or maybe it was himself. He felt Dirk's panic reach out to try and touch him, and in a frenzy trying to keep Dirk away, he clawed out at it.

Dirk needed to go away. He couldn't have Dirk here.

He would just make it _worse._

“But you did Todd. You did lie. And all it did was hurt those you love. Or, supposedly love. If you had just done what you were told, you wouldn’t be in this position. You put yourself here. Everything that has happened, has been your fault. Wouldn’t you agree?” Adrien released his leg, standing slowly and moving around to Todd’s other side. Todd groaned at something distant, willing it to go away.

Why couldn't Dirk just leave him alone?

“Mm, leave me alone, man.” He spoke to the space in front of his, closing his eyes. This was a bad time. He couldn't have him here now. This was _not the right time._

“Back to this, I thought we were making progress.” Adrien grabbed Todd’s uninjured hand and slowly turned it over, running his fingers along the lines of his palm. He moaned.

“I don't, want. Go away. Leave me alone.” Todd tried to pull away from Adrien, but he only gripped on tighter. The urgency in Todd's voice only grew stronger. “Leave me alone!”

Who was he talking to again?

Adrien dug his nails into Todd’s palm, smiling as Todd cried out in pain.

“I’m sure you don’t know this, because, why would you. But the hand has some of the most sensitive nerves in the body. All nerves and tendons, no muscles to keep them safe. How does that feel?” Adrien pulled his hand back slightly, blood dripping from his fingertips.

“Leave me _alone,_ Dirk.” Todd suddenly focused on Adrien, pulling back hard and landing on the ground with a hard thud. “Let go!”

He felt Dirk's presence shift backwards, and just like that, he was back to having the bond stay in the shadows. He'd never been able to retract it before.

“Oh, Dirk’s here. Tell him hello for me. Honestly, I don’t understand how he puts up with you. Did he lose a bet? Must have. A bet with the universe.” Adrien stood, stalking forward to where Todd had fallen. Todd curled away from him.

“Leave me alone, Dirk.” His voice was a whisper again, and he realized with that would have been a shock that he'd started crying.

He hated the universe. He hated Adrien. He hated himself.

Adrien couldn't take how he felt about Dirk away too.

“This is pathetic. You can’t even defend yourself. I’m sure Dirk just loves that about you. A sad, little, weak nothing that he has to support and keep alive. What a chore for him.” Adrien knelt down next to Todd’s chest, smiling down at him.

“You should apologize to him for all the trouble you cause. All of the pain you cause him.” Adrien pushed his hand against Todd’s shoulder.

“ _Fuck_ you. I'm not, I'm not-”

“You’re not what? Weak? Broken? Useless? A burden? People who aren’t these things don’t have to say they aren’t, they just aren’t. You have to shout it to the heavens to believe it’s true, and even then, you know it’s not. Why waste the breath?” Adrien wrapped his hand around Todd’s throat, pulling him up closer to him. He clawed at his arm.

“Shit. Shit.” He was overcome by a coughing fit, falling back into Adrien.

“Dirk deserves better. He doesn’t deserve to have to carry you. Wouldn’t you agree?” Adrien had leaned next to Todd’s ear and was whispering, the grin adding a happy tone to his words that made Todd shiver. Trying to speak, all that came out was another cough. Silently, still suffocating, Todd managed to nod his head.

“Well, at least you know.” Adrien pushed him backwards and watched as Todd gasped for air on the ground. Even now that his windpipe was free, he still couldn't breathe.

“I'm sorry.” He didn't add in Dirk's name. He didn't need to. They both knew what he meant.

“Apologies only get you so far, Todd.” Adrien stood, glancing down the hall before looking back down at Todd. “Can you stand, or do I have to carry you the rest of the way?”

Todd didn't answer, blinking to try and bring the ceiling into focus. In truth, his vision was beginning to fail him from the lack of oxygen. Even on the ground, he felt dizzy. He tried to answer Adrien, but all that came out was an unintelligible muttering.

“Right, that was, truly terrifying. Truly. Come along.” Adrien’s hands were on the front of his shirt again, hauling him up and over his shoulder. He grabbed tight onto Adrien, both terrified of falling and terrified of being near him. He guessed if he fell again though, it would probably be worse.

It was harder to keep track where they were going now; his head felt loud and painful, not focusing on any one thought. He figured that they must have been walking for at least a few minutes though, because just as suddenly as he'd been pulled up, he was dropped inside what he was pretty sure was his room.

Or, mostly sure. It was spinning too much to actually make out where he was. He was however able to register Adrien, standing over him and frowning.

“I should have asked the witches if the quality of the wolf mattered. I don’t know if you’re going to be good enough. But we’ll see, won’t we.” He nudged at Todd’s knee with his foot and laughed as Todd cried out. “Get some sleep, try not to die. Only a couple hours more.”

“Adrien…” Todd turned his head, able to make out what was unmistakably Adrien leaving. Todd hated him. He hated him, of course.

He was pretty sure.

Adrien sighed, turning back, letting his head tip to one side with boredom.

“What?” He asked, as if he had other places more interesting to be.

“Mm I'm, sorry for…” He trailed off as the words jumbled up in his mouth. He couldn't think straight. “Is, being, difficult.”

“Is being difficult. I would say that’s fairly accurate.” Adrien smirked, moving forward slightly. “Anything else, or just that, unintelligent gibberish?”

“'M sorry.” He moaned quietly at the pain in his body. “You're right.”

“At last, wisdom can be found even in the dumbest of people. Right about what?” Adrien was smiling as he took another step forward. Todd finally focused his gaze, frowning at nothing and everything.

“I'm broken.”

“Verily. Anything else?” Adrien was crouching in front of Todd, his dark eyes watching him carefully.

“'M sorry 'bout Dirk.” Todd's head rolled to the side, grimacing. “Is bad. I'm bad. Bad. For Dirk.”

Todd had ruined his life.

It was his fault.

“Well, that’s quite the revelation. How about you go ahead and tell him yourself. Would you like that?” Adrien was smirking, his too sharp canines just visible above his lower lip. The world threatened to tip over and Todd grabbed his sleeve for support, nodding.

It was his fault. It was fine.

“Very well. You can speak with Dirk. No need to worry about any sort of pain that it might cause. Tell him hello for me.” Adrien stood, heading back toward the door. He paused glancing back, still smiling.

“Don’t forget to say goodbye.” He closed the door behind him as he walked out into the hall.

Todd closed his eyes, laughing to himself. He didn't even know how to find Dirk again, much less talk to him. He wasn't sure where he'd shoved him off to earlier. Still though, he could feel a faint glimmer in the distant dark when he closed his eyes. He reached out his right hand, the one part of his body was wasn't injured beyond repair, though it still stung, and reached out for the light. Like a rush of noise and presence, he could feel Dirk all at once.

Not just feel Dirk. He could _hear_ him.

Opening his eyes, he saw Dirk Gently standing by his bed, and staring in horror.

* * *

**Priest? In My Life? More Likely Than You'd Think**

“I don't see why we can't find them.” Dirk turned to Martin, who was near the back if the group, his head swiveling into every alleyway. Upon Dirk's call, he glanced at him.

“Vogel ain't stupid, Brit. Kid won't be found if he don't want to.”

“But he _has_ to be nearby. Vogel wouldn't just, leave. Not with everyone going missing.” Dirk huffed, crossing his arms as Martin waved him off. He frowned out at the endless streets in front of them all. He sighed loudly, the others ignoring him.

_Hunch._

Dirk stopped dead, looking around for Friedverse. He hadn't gotten a real, proper hunch since he'd arrived, and now the tug in the back of his mind was louder than ever.

_Go right._

“Uh, guys?” Dirk raised his voice a bit, trying to get someone's attention. Spotting Friedverse near Amanda, he dove to grab their arm. They stumbled back as Dirk held tight to them.

“Hello!? Mr. Friedverse! Are you listening to me?” Dirk shook them, and they stumbled away in contempt.

“Yes, Dirk, we are! What is it?” They asked. Dirk smiled as he pointed to their right, the rest of the group staring wearily at him.

“I'm afraid that we have to divert our course. Right is where we have to be going. Anyone have any complaints?” Amanda raised her hand, but Farah pulled it back down. “And I was wondering, are you capable of giving me hunches at the moment? Or do they just happen naturally? Because, well, obviously one just did.”

“Oh, um, it’s more of an autonomic function. I, or, we don’t really need to think about guiding you around.” They answered. “Though, proximity, might make them, louder.”

“Well, that explains the screaming in my head-” Dirk's smile faltered as the noise in the back of his mind got even louder. “Well, that's. Definitely very loud. Much too loud, actually. Can no one else hear it?”

Friedverse shook their head, frowning.

“Is it telling you something or just a noise?” They asked. Dirk shook his head.

“I'm not, sure. It's giving me quite the headache. Nothing like any of my actual hunches. It's- ow.” Dirk grabbed his head with one hand, narrowing his eyes. “That's not a fun thing.”

“Should we leave?” They asked, frowning.

“No, it's-” Dirk paused, his eyes widening. “Oh.”

Dirk was suddenly on the ground, and for the life of him, he could feel Todd right there next to him. It was like nothing that had happened yet before; he felt that, if he wanted, he could reach out and touch him. Whatever had been muting their bond had been peeled away, and quite suddenly, Dirk could hear and feel Todd clearer than ever before.

_"Hear that, Dirk? Ken is real excited to see you all. Make sure to tear his arms off after I die tomorrow."_

Dirk gasped as something pushed him back into reality, and he became glaringly aware of multiple pairs of heads hovering over him. Friedverse had their hands up, as if to claim that he hadn't done this, and Gripps, Cross, and Martin were huddled around him, nearly blocking out Friedverse.

“Brit. You with us, here now?”

Dirk nodded, taking a breath.

“Todd. I can hear Todd. Martin!” Dirk grabbed Martin's shoulders, a smile making it's way onto his face. “He's talking to me! Something about Ken? Oh, bad news, he says he's going to die. But if i can talk to him, I can find him, right!” Dirk turned, smiling up at Friedverse, who still had his hands up.

“None of that sounds, great. Did you take all his emotions and break him? No, you were there, just– Is Todd alright?” They asked. Dirk flung his hands up into the air, grinning.

“I have no clue! Oh, wait, there's someone in the room with him. Someone, new. I don't believe the connection has been cut yet. Do you really think Ken is there? It all seems rather mysterious.”

Martin frowned at his brothers as Dirk tilted his head.

“Oh yes, definitely a new person. Where is Todd going?” Dirk used Cross’ shoulders to push himself up to his feet, turning in a full circle before finding a space to step out of the huddle. He gave a thumbs up to Friedverse and Amanda.

“Everything is alright!”

“Are, are all bonds like this or should we be worried that we damaged him yesterday?” Friedverse glanced over at Amanda who gave a quick shrug.

“Um, sorta, but maybe don’t rule out that, this could also be your fault.” She said, patting them on the back. Dirk laughed.

“Oh, this has definitely not happened before. Not to this _magnitude_. Oh, he's stopped. Why has he done that? What a thrilling mystery we have here, gang.”

Dirk paused as he tried to analyze what Todd was feeling.

“Hold on. Why is Todd listening to… whoever, this is. That's rather strange. I do believe I am suspicious now. You?” Dirk's eyes widened, turning back to the two in front of him. Amanda opened her mouth to speak, but faltered.

“We definitely broke him. This is, odd behavior, yes?” Friedverse asked. Amanda nodded.

“It’s, yeah, it’s odd. Dirk, are you sure you’re okay?” Amanda asked.

“Oh yes, I'm quite-” Dirk stumbled back, exhaling sharply; he fell right into Farah, who nearly toppled over. Dirk blinked.

“Huh.”

Dirk caved into himself as he felt an invisible blow to his chest, and as he fell forward, he nearly forgot to break his fall. Dirk's chest rose and fell harshly, the whole front if his torso aching.

“Dirk! What- what just happened?” Friedverse went to move forward, but stopped, looking to see what Amanda did. Amanda was looking at Martin, who in turn had suddenly gotten a look of anger on his face. Martin glanced up at Friedverse and Amanda, frowning.

“Brit’s hurt.”

Dirk fell backwards, calling out as he grabbed his head. Farah clenched and unclenched her fists, trying not to fall into a panic as she took a step back. Dirk was curled on the ground, breathing heavily, and Friedverse heard Amanda swear under her breath.

“What the hell are they doing to Todd? We have to help!” Amanda grabbed Friedverse's sleeve, and with the other Rowdies, they rushed forward to try and calm Dirk down. They got to him before the three older Rowdies, and Amanda pulled him up, glancing at Friedverse.

“Dude! What the hell are we supposed to do!?”

“I– I don’t,” He glanced around at the others before looking back down at Dirk. “Apartment.” They grabbed tightly to Amanda and Dirk and they were suddenly back in the living room, the others having been left behind.

“Seriously, man!?”

Dirk cried out, grabbing his hip. He blinked through the pain, frowning at the sudden change in scenery.

“What are we doing here? Ah, god-” Dirk clenched his teeth as the pain in his hip only worsened, and he leaned his head back to get some air. “What is happening!?”

“Amanda, you’ve seen this before. With Todd, correct? How did you help then?” They asked, crouching next to Dirk. Amanda shrugged, looking around wildly.

“I don't know! We just kind of, waited it out! Unless we can stop them from hurting Todd!” Amanda whisper yelled at Friedverse, Dirk groaning on the ground.

“Okay, well, waiting isn’t going to work, he’s going to go into shock before that happens. Can, can I take his pain, will that work?” They asked, grabbing onto Dirk’s arm.

“This is a bond, dude! It's like, way different!” They heard Dirk moan, trying to pull out of Friedverse's grip. They released his arm as Dirk covered his face with his hands, and Amanda’s frown deepened.

Dirk was sure he had had worse, but the fact that it was happening to Todd made it worse than anything Priest could do.

“Is it a psychological bond, physiological, or both?” They asked, glancing up at Amanda again.

“Their souls are linked, dude!”

“Metaphysical. Okay, um, we could pull him out of reality. Would that work?”

“Mm quiet. My chest, hurts.” Dirk hit Amanda's arm softly, gasping for air. He seemed to be struggling to breathe. Amanda swore under her breath again. Friedverse frowned, looping their arms under Dirk’s.

“Sorry, couch.” As carefully as they could, they moved Dirk to the couch, propping him up. Dirk took an unsteady, shallow breath.

“I do believe, that there's something, very, very wrong-” Dirk screamed loudly in their ears and he fell to his side, grabbing and squeezing his shoulder. Friedverse let go in a panic, and Amanda put her hands to her head.

“Shit shit, shit!”

“Amanda! Stop panicking. Help us.” Friedverse carefully pulled Dirk back up. Dirk whimpered quietly as they touched him, still too focused on his shoulder to do much of anything.

“Priest. It feels like Priest. Todd.” Tears were running down Dirk's face as he grabbed aimlessly at his shoulder, trying to stop the pain.

“Amanda grab his hands. Dirk, try to breathe. It’ll be okay. Todd, Todd will be okay.” Dirk shook his head, his eyes closed.

“No don't, touch my hands. My hand. My hand hurts.” Dirk grimaced as he dropped his arms, his left hand clenching.

“Which hand?” Friedverse asked, glancing down, trying to spot any sort of damage.

“Left.”

Amanda frowned, pulling herself onto the couch so that she could get a better hold on Dirk. He whined as she took a firmer hold on his shoulder, but didn't try to get away.

“I know it hurts but you have to breathe. If you go into shock you could die. So just, focus on Amanda. Focus on her holding your shoulder. Can you tell me what’s going on?” Friedverse glanced up at Amanda, who was frowning. Dirk only moaned in response.

“Hurts worse.”

“Okay, Amanda? Any ideas?” Friedverse asked. She sighed, glancing around the room until her eyes fell on the bed.

“Get me that blue blanket. It's Todd's.”

Friedverse waved their hand, the blanket landing next to Amanda. She grabbed it, and went to wrap it around Dirk's shoulders.

Dirk cried out again, even louder, and grabbed his hand.

“Hand! Hand!”

“Dirk, there’s nothing wrong with your hand, focus on breathing.” Friedverse wrapped his arms around Dirk’s shoulders and held him tightly. Amanda held on from the other side, and Dirk, bent forward, buried his head in his knees.

“Todd.”

“Hey, Dirk? Todd's okay. I promise. Todd's okay.” Amanda hugged him tighter, and Friedverse didn't miss the way her own face was pulled tight with worry. Dirk shook his head.

“'s bad.”

“Can, you hear anything, or see anything, anything at all?” Friedverse asked, tightening their grip on Dirk’s shoulders. Dirk was shivering violently.

“Fenrir.”

“The god? He’s there?” They asked. Dirk nodded slowly.

“Fenrir. Todd. It, he. It hurts.”

“How?” Amanda glared over at them, shaking her head slowly. Friedverse sighed but waited. After five minutes of sitting in silence, Dirk raised his head.

“Dirk?” Amanda’s voice was quiet, scared to upset the peace that has settled upon the room finally. “Hey. Hey man.”

Dirk's breathing was shallow as he laid his head against the couch, shutting his eyes. His chest was tight, but not from he anxiety.

“That looks like, really bad. Does it? I’m not familiar enough with human respiratory functions. No man, it doesn’t look good. Dirk? Dirk, can you breathe okay?” Friedverse moved forward slowly, placing their hand on his chest and frowning. “That doesn’t feel right. Amanda, sit him up.”

“Amanda…” Dirk groaned, out of breath, as Amanda pulled him into a sitting position. He just couldn't catch his breath, and whatever was wrong felt scarily like injured he had gotten in his childhood. A shudder ran down his spine.

“Dirk, we need you to try to take a breath. A deep breath, okay?” Friedverse was still pushing slightly against his chest, frowning as they thought.

Fine. That was fine.

Dirk tried to breath in, but gasped halfway through and was thrown into an unsuccessful coughing fit.

He couldn't breathe.

“His lung has collapsed. Lay him back down.” Friedverse’s hands shifted to his shoulders as they pushed him back into the cushions. He moaned, shaking his head.

Shit. He needed to catch his breath. He could feel a vague panic from Todd in the distance, and it made it even harder to catch his breath. Amanda was frowning, lowering him onto the couch as she looked up to Friedverse for help.

“Okay, Amanda, back-up. Dirk, this is really important, when I tell you to you have to breathe out. Do you understand?”

Dirk blinked against the lack of oxygen, nodding.

“Good. Okay. Wait, what are we doing? We’re going to repair his lung. It should work. Should?!” They placed their hand on Dirk’s chest and glanced over at Amanda. “It will work. Okay, Dirk. On three breathe out. One, two, three!”

Blue light flashed through the apartment as Dirk forced the air from his lungs. Pain ignited in his chest and he cried out as he took a in a gasp of air. Friedverse and Amanda jumped backwards as Dirk sat up.

“What in the _worlds_!?” Dirk breathed in deeply, his head spinning as it was suddenly given the oxygen it needed.

“Are you okay? Did that work? You’re not bleeding from your eyes, so that seems good. That was an option?!” Friedverse was watching Dirk carefully. Dirk nodded.

“I'm, I'm alright. I-” He frowned, the panic in Todd suddenly spiking.

Something else was happening.

“No. Todd, wait-” Dirk cried out clutching at his head.

“Dirk!” Amanda grabbed him, attempting steady him. “Okay man! Just, like, shit!” She shared a desperate look with Friedverse; they shrugged, at a loss for what to do.

“Please, stop. No more.” Dirk cried, curling in on himself. “He can’t breathe.” His breathing became ragged as he reached out for Amanda. She grabbed his hands, nodding.

“I know. I know man. It hurts, but- we can, Todd will be okay. You'll, be okay too.” She closed her eyes, stopping herself from crying. “Everything will be cool.”

Dirk nodded through the tears as he started to claw at his knee.

“Todd. It hurts. How- why? It didn’t feel like this before. Why?” Dirk was rocking slightly, holding tightly to his knee.

“I'm sorry man. I'm sorry. You can do this.” She glared at Friedverse, who'd opened their mouth to say something. “You got this.”

“I don’t! It’s Priest! It feels- feels the same. Why?” He leaned over into Amanda as another sob raked through him. She slowly pulled him into a hug.

“Hey, Priest is like, super dead okay? He can't do shit. This is just some lame god wannabe.” She felt Dirk shake. “You're all good.”

Dirk shook his head.

“It hurts. He’s hurt. There’s so much broken.” Dirk cried, gasping again as he leaned down towards his knee. “Everything is bad.”

A shudder shook Amanda.

“Everything is, sort of bad now. But it won't be.” She had to convince herself too.

“I’m sorry. Please.” Dirk clenched his right hand. “No. No. Stop!” He curled in tighter, pulling his hand to his chest. Friedverse was arguing with himself, literally, as Amanda tried to keep Dirk calm.

“Nothing is happening to you, Dirk. You have to-”

“Todd! No! Come back!” Dirk sat up looking around for something the others couldn’t see. “Todd! Wait! No, Amanda. I can’t, I can’t-”

“I know. I know, and it like, really sucks.” Her voice as shaking. “But we're, safe here.”

“He’s gone! I can’t get to him. Why would he push me out? I don’t understand. Why? Why-” Dirk fell back into Amanda, pulling her closer. “He’s hurt. We have to, we have to find him.”

“We will! Like. Really soon. The guys are out looking right now.” Friedverse had started pacing around the couch but returned as they noticed Dirk relaxing. Dirk looked up.

“Can’t you find him. Why, can’t you see him? I can _feel_ him. Can’t you- can’t you?” Dirk cried lightly. She held onto him together.

“He's not my bond. But-” Amanda sighed. “Dude, can you stop arguing with yourself?” A groan came from Friedverse's direction.

“I'm arguing with them! We aren't arguing, Hugo is just mad at me. I'm not yelling back. Shut up, universe person whatever!” Friedverse closed their eyes. “I'm sorry. He is upset that we can't help Dirk. Because he's like dying! He isn't.”

“Shut up.” Amanda shook her head. “Dirk? Are you okay?”

“Please be quiet.” Dirk moaned, leaning back into the couch as he released Amanda. “Just. Is there nothing you can do?”

“Unfortunately. This whole bond thing seems to be stemming from Todd, and seeing as we can't get to him, we can't actually stop it from hurting. Sorry man! Next time!” Friedverse frowned. Amanda shook her head.

“Sorry.”

Dirk shook his head as he started pacing, trying to work the pain from his leg.

“It’s, something. I just, I don’t understand. I can feel him again could we, somehow, find him through me? He’s somewhere, we just need, a pointer thingie.” Dirk rubbed his temples.

“In theory, maybe. In practice, it's debatable. Our safest bet would be to let the others hunt some more.” Friedverse glanced at Amanda. “They're good at that. I designed them myself.”

Dirk frowned up at him as he continued to pace. An odd pressure was building in his head.

“You’re going to pat your own back right now?” Dirk mumbled.

“Probably. They're an- shut up, Hugo. This isn't about me.” Friedverse sighed. “All I said was they they're good at hunting. Martin especially, like his brother, just different.”

“I- I can’t even think about asking about that right now. What does that even- what is that sound?”

“Sound?” Amanda stood to her feet, twirling around to try and find something of place. “There's like, nothing here. Is this another bond thing?”

“I don’t know. I hear. Ringing? Maybe?” Dirk spun in a circle looking for the sound, it was over near the bed. He was sure. Amanda and Friedverse frowned.

“Uh, Dirk-”

But Dirk wasn’t listening. The ringing was definitely coming from near the bed. He moved forward slowly, frowning. His vision failed him for a moment, the room vanishing and white walls taking their place. Panic rose in his chest as he pushed away from the small room and was back in the apartment.

With someone else.

“Todd?” Todd had appeared, leaning against the bed his eyes closed and his chin slumped against his chest. Amanda followed Dirk’s gaze and frowned.

“Dirk? What are you–” Friedverse grabbed her arm.

“I think, we should maybe, give him a moment. Let’s go speak with the others.” They disappeared but Dirk didn’t notice, he took a slow step forward, looking Todd over. The first thing that drew his attention was the blood. There was so much of it. Todd drew away as he took another step forward.

“Todd? Are you– hey, no it’s okay.” Dirk lowered himself down to the ground and felt tears threatening to spill from his eyes.

“Hey, are you, can I help?” Todd clamped his eyes shut, his face screwed up in what Dirk was able to distantly recognize as pain. He shook his head.

“No Dirk. Why do you wanna?” Todd's voice was slurred.

“Want to what? Help? Because you’re hurt, and, I, we’re looking for you, but you’re far away. Do you know where you are?” Dirk scooted forward slowly. He was sure Todd wasn’t actually here, but maybe he could reach out and hold him, somehow. Todd shook his head again.

“No, don't.” He frowned at thin air, moving his arm away from Dirk with another moan of pain. The breath left Todd as he saw his hand, bruised beyond recognition. “'M bad.”

“No, you’re not. You’re fantastic. Please, can you look at me?” Dirk stopped moving forward, sitting on his knees and trying to meet Todd’s eye. Todd started shaking slightly as he glanced up, his eyes tired.

They were beyond exhaustion. They were something different. Something that Dirk recognized.

“Why?”

“Because I’ve missed you. And I want to see your eyes.” Dirk tried to smile but he felt the tears start to roll down his cheeks. “Why do you think you’re bad?” A hard shudder rocked Todd's body as he looked up to something Dirk couldn't see.

“He's right.” His breath caught. “He's right Dirk. 'M sorry. 'M sorry.”

“You don’t, you don’t have to apologize. You haven’t done anything. Who was right?” Dirk scoot forward slightly, looking closer at the bloodied parts of Todd’s clothes. His shoulder looked the worst, and it looked like it was still bleeding heavily. There were marks on his knee, and his hands were both painful to look at. Todd gave a panicked look at the proximity, but made no move to get away.

“Adrien.”

The name looked like it left a bad taste in Todd's mouth, and Dirk wasn't sure if the expression on Todd's face made him angry or sad.

“Adrien. You mean Fenrir, right?” Todd had retracted from Dirk quickly at the name, a sharp inhale of breath the only audible indicator that something was wrong. Todd looked, not paranoid, but like he was on the verge of a panic attack.

“Or, or we can talk about something else. Whatever you want.” Dirk tried quickly, Todd’s panic filling his own chest. Todd eyed him carefully, his eyes flitting to that mysterious object that he couldn't see. He heard him take an unsteady breath.

“Don't leave. ‘M sorry I messed up. Please don't leave Dirk.” He curled into himself, the blood that had gotten onto the floor getting onto his clothes. “I'll listen to you. 'M sorry.”

“I’m not going anywhere. I promise. You, you’re a great listener. You listen all the time. When I talk, and rant, and just, anytime I need you. You’re there. Let me be here for you. Please, stay with me, okay?” Dirk wanted to lean forward but the panic was building in his chest. He heard a quiet cry from in Todd's direction.

“'M sorry. I didn't listen. 'M sorry.” Todd reached out for Dirk, but his hand fell when a sharp pain shot through it. “Don't leave.”

“I’m not going anywhere. I’ll stay. For as long as you need. You don’t, you don’t have to be sorry, it’s okay. Really.” Dirk reached forward slightly, holding his palm up, maybe, if he tried hard enough, he could hold Todd’s hand. He wasn’t sure. This had never happened before.

Todd tried to pull himself closer.

“Mm. Martin said I could not, not listen. I didn't.” He hid his face from Dirk, moving his arm. “Is bad.”

“Martin? Like- oh. _Oh_. You meant, right. Right of course.” Dirk scooted forward, closing the distance, hovering close to Todd, and wanting to grab his face, to pull him closer.

“I didn't listen. I was, supposed to. I didn't.” Another cry shook his body. “Everything fucking hurts. I didn't listen.”

“I know. But, it’s okay, we can figure it out. Together. Right?”

“No no, Dirk.” Todd glanced up, his eyes desperate, searching for something. “'M _supposed_ to listen. Like- like you 'n Vogel. Listen.” He breathed unsteadily. “Arm hurts.”

Dirk glanced down, and felt a cry rise up in his throat as he saw the bruising on Todd’s hand. He followed a line of blood back up to the wound in Todd’s shoulder and frowned.

“He bit you. I understand. It’s, it’ll be okay, yeah? It will, please, just, stay with me, okay?”

Dirk froze as Todd grabbed tightly onto him.

“I did somethin’ wrong. Why’re you here?” Dirk shook his head, grabbing onto Todd’s wrist and smiling.

“You didn’t do anything wrong. I’m sure. And if you did, it’s okay, I forgive you. Always. I’m here because you called. Because I care. I love you, please, let me help.” Dirk leaned his head down, his forehead brushing against Todd’s. “Please, just, hold on, okay? We’re going to find you. It’ll be okay.”

“Hours.” Todd mumbled something under his breath, blinking. Dirk frowned, leaning back.

“What do you mean hours?”

“Hours. Adrien-” Todd grimaced at the name, but then dissolved into an unsteady smile. “It'll be okay. Just some hours. I lied to you.”

“Okay, about what?” Todd laughed.

“Said I'd stay.”

Dirk frowned, the pain and panic was still pounding away in his chest. But there was something else. Sharper than sadness. Regret, perhaps.

“Well, then don’t make it a lie, stay. It’ll be okay. We’ll find you, and, and– I don’t understand.” Dirk brought his hand up to Todd’s face and tried to wipe away the tears without luck. “What do you mean?”

“Hours. Is this, _whole_ big thing.” Todd made a vague, painful gesture. “Big sacrifice. Then-” He made a half hearted poofing noise, gripping his hand. Blood had dropped from his hand and onto his face.

“No, it’ll be okay. You’ll be okay, we’ll, we’ll find you, before. You’ll be okay.”

“I gotta see you again. Before. That's nice.” Todd's speech had deteriorated into something that Dirk couldn't even recognize as Todd, but Todd seemed to be fighting whatever was trying to pull him into unconsciousness. He gripped tighter to Dirk's shirt, and Dirk nearly jumped when he realized that not only was blood getting on his shirt, but also his pants. He was covered in it.

“Hey, no, come on, stay awake. Before what? Nothing’s going to happen. I promise. Please, stay with me.”

Todd looked up with the clearest expression he'd yet seen on him.

“'M gonna die, Dirk.”

“No you won’t. I’m, I’m not gonna let you. You aren’t allowed. Simply– not allowed to. You just, you can fight it, yeah? Just, fight back. Please.” Todd let go of him as he finally processed what he was saying, staring up at him in alarm.

“No don't, I'm, you're-” He closed his eyes. “Why are you telling me whatta do?” His breathing sounded unsteady again as he clutched at his own throat.

“I, what? I’m just, I’m sorry. Please. Hey, please, look, can you look at me?” Dirk frowned, holding Todd’s face carefully, trying to pull him up. Todd kept his eyes shut.

“'M sorry. I'll listen.” He fell to the ground, curling up at Dirk’s legs. “Don't do anything.”

“Okay, I’m, I’m sorry. I won’t. But, we, we can save you. We will save you. You’re going to be okay. Right?” Dirk didn’t know what to do, he had never seen Todd like this. He had never really seen anyone like this. It was a violent reminder of things long since past, which only made Dirk angry. Todd seemed to feel Dirk's anger, and curled up tighter.

“Dirk…”

“I’m here. I’m not going anywhere. I promise.”

Todd pushed away violently as a loud crashing noise came from behind Dirk, followed by two angry voices. Todd started shaking again as Dirk turned, intending to scold whoever had just given Todd a near heart attack. He groaned when he saw Friedverse and Amanda, having returned from wherever they went.

“It's your fault you got punched, dude.”

“Well forgive me for wanting to make sure he didn’t die. You knew damn well that was a bad idea when you did it! It was the best option! You are so–”

“Dirk?” Amanda paused, midway through their argument, and stared at Dirk on the ground. Dirk hadn't been sure how strong the bond had gotten before but he knew now. Amanda was staring at him in careful horror, and Dirk knew that she could see the blood. “Uh, did we like, miss something?” She elbowed Friedverse to look over. Somewhere in the background, Todd whimpered.

“Oh my god, Todd!” Friedverse moved forward, his face more confused than usual.

“I don’t understand, how, you’re, you’re not here. How, how do these bonds even work?” Friedverse frowned over at Amanda.

“Good question.” Amanda was staring wide eyes at Todd, not taking her eyes off of his hand. Todd curled tighter against the wall. “We- I should ask Martin that. When we see him. What the fuck?”

“Wait, you can, see him?” Dirk frowned, glancing back at Todd.

“Yeah, dude, he looks awful. Very comforting, Hugo, truly, gold star. Well he does!” The universe sighed and glanced back down at Dirk. “Can we help?”

“Mm, 'Manda?” Todd was looking up, his face screwed up in what Dirk recognized as confusion. “The fuckin’, Blackwing guy? Dirk, what's happening?” Todd laid back down, clutching his arm.

“Um, it’s, really complicated. It’s, the universe? And the Blackwing guy. I’m– we’re still not very sure.” Dirk said, glancing back at Friedverse who was scowling forward.

“It’s not that complicated. I’m inhabiting Hugo to help with, well, with this whole mess. Have you made contact with Fenrir? Dude!” Amanda groaned along with Hugo as the universe frowned. Todd retracted quickly, slamming into the wall. Dirk let out a low growl at Friedverse, surprising even himself as he crouched protectively in front of him.

“This is one of those emotion things again. Something I’ve missed. Yeah, yeah it is. I’ve said it before, there are far too many. I apologize. Dude are you like, okay? Can we help, maybe like, do the thing again? Like yesterday?” Friedverse made a hmph sound before shaking their head. “Probably won’t work. This bond business seems, odd.”

“Dirk.” Amanda's voice was shaking, not with sadness, but with an intense sort of anger. She rested her gaze on Dirk, her eyes careful. “Who, the hell did this to my brother?”

“I think,” Dirk glanced back carefully, Todd was still shaking, “I think it’s who we think it is. I don’t really, know.” Dirk scooted forward, coming up on Todd’s side.

“Are you still there?” He asked quietly. They saw Todd nod quietly, grabbing onto Dirk's sleeve. Amanda exhaled sharply as the bite mark on his shoulder came into view. Todd whispered something to Dirk, but they couldn't hear it.

“I’m not going anywhere. I promise. Just hang on yeah? You can do that, right?” Dirk leaned forward, resting his forehead on Todd’s, a cry finally escaping him. Todd whispered again, smiling absently as he held onto him.

He didn't seem to want to let go.

“Mr. Friedverse, are you able to find him. You can see him now, so we, we could find him right?” Dirk glanced over, and watched as Friedverse frowned.

“I mean, possibly. But whatever is blocking me, it’s still there. I could get us, within ten square miles. Maybe. We need something, specific.” They glanced over at Amanda who was still frowning at Todd. She bit her lip.

“I swear if I have to use my wand, I'm next in line hit you. Right after I hit that son of a bitch god.” She glared at Friedverse.

“No, you shouldn’t have to. I just mean, we need to know where we’re going, I can get us close, but I can’t get us all the way there. Ten square miles is a lot of cover, if we had a couple of days–”

“We don’t.” Dirk said, glaring over. “We have a couple of hours. Todd, hey, come on. Do you remember anything about where you are? A sign, or a tree, or a building, or something?”

Todd mumbled, but seeing as the words didn't make sense, he pushed himself up to lean against Dirk, trying again.

He knew this answer.

“Mm, recreation. Is, is north. Northern. Northern recreation.” He glanced up at Dirk, still smiling with an absent expression. “Is, did good. Remembering things.”

“You’re the best at it.” Dirk smiled, leaning his head back down. “We’ll find you, I promise.”

“Wait, dude, like, that site? I thought there was nothing up there?” Amanda glanced at the two on the ground, and then at Friedverse. “What are they like, holed up in some old building.”

Todd nodded, and then shook his head.

“Is both.”

“Right. Because that makes sense.” She paused. “The hell do you mean, hours? What does that mean?”

“Amanda, not, not right now. Todd, what do you mean it’s both?” Dirk pulled his face up trying to keep him awake as he nodded off. Todd exhaled.

“Like the, _big_ box. The small one. Blue with weird person. Old outside. Really big.” Todd made an expanding motion with his hands, ignoring the pain that even Dirk could feel. “Inside.”

“Like a pocket dimension?” Friedverse asked, frowning down at Todd. “That’s not really technology that humans have. Is this something the witches did?”

“Mmm. Guy doesn't like ‘em. Witches. Maybe they made it.” He frowned. “Can they do that? Mm, maybe.”

“He… Doesn't sound like himself. Are you sure he's not bleeding out?” Amanda stared at the blood on the floor, rocking back and forth on her feet. Friedverse glanced down and frowned.

“That’s too much blood. He’s, how is he still conscious?” They glanced up at Dirk and frowned.

“Dude, should be healing. What's going on? Dirk, what the hell is happening?”

“I–”

“It’s you.” Friedverse pointed at Dirk. “You’re, or, both of you, are keeping the bond open right? Pull his, consciousness or whatever here?” Dirk frowned glancing down at Todd. He wasn’t sure, he still wasn’t sure how this was happening to begin with.

“This… I don't like this. Hold on.” Amanda pulled out her phone, her face taunt as he dialed the phone. Flashing a glare at Friedverse, she walked into the kitchen. “Martin? Yeah, like, small problem…”

“We don’t have time. Dirk, you have to let him go.” Friedverse said, moving forward. Dirk shook his head, tears streaking down his cheeks.

“No, what? No, we just– why?”

“Leaving sounds, lame.” Todd glanced up at Friedverse, speaking slowly. “Let’s do the other one.”

“The other one is you dying from blood loss. The connection you are accessing, it’s blocking your natural healing ability and most likely sending your body into some sort of stress induced shock. If you don’t let go, Todd will die, and probably take you with him.”

Todd's gaze finally refocused for a minute, staring intensely at him before slipping back into his glazed look.

“It's a better way to die.”

Amanda was yelling at Martin in the background.

Friedverse sighed and lowered themself to the floor.

“Listen to us Todd, you–” Todd kicked back, making contact with his face. His expression was perfectly clear now, and he looked on the verge of panic.

“ _Don't tell me what to do!”_

Friedverse held their nose, sighing heavily.

“Fine. I won’t. But can I ask you something?” Todd nodded, mumbling incoherently at nothing. Dirk held onto him tighter.

“Okay, can you please take a look at Dirk’s shoulder?”

“Can't the universe let me die in peace?” Todd grumbled, frowning, more clear than he'd been since he'd shown up in the apartment. “I guess. Why?”

Friedverse glanced over at Dirk, who shrugged and removed his jacket, twinging slightly and then stopping, the fabric over his shoulder was drenched in blood.

“You don’t just share souls right? You share pain? Well right now, you’re sharing injuries. If you don’t let go, Dirk is going to start to die. And then you’ll die, followed quickly by him. Does that make sense?”

Todd pushed away from Dirk, backing into the far wall and frowning.

“I fucking hate the universe.”

“That’s fine. You don’t have to like me. But this isn’t something I’m doing. And it’s not your fault either, you didn’t know. I don’t think any of us knew. Well, now that I think about it, it might be partially my fault, but we’ll deal with that later. The important thing right now is that we haven’t reached the point of no return. You can still heal, and live, and be saved, but you will have to let go.”

“Yo!” Amanda appeared again, ducking under Friedverse’s arm. “Martin says you totally have to stop talking through the bond thing or like-” She paused, looking at Dirk's shoulder. Amanda sighed. “Or that could happen. Which would have been great to know, but. Hey Todd.”

She waved halfheartedly. Todd nodded back, struggling to keep his eyes from glazing.

“This sucks.” He glanced up at Dirk, his eyes tired again.

“It does. But it’s okay. We’ll find you. I promise.” Dirk went to reach forward but cried, bruises had started to appear on his hand.

“Shit. Dirk!” Todd looked around the room wildly. “Shit. Okay. Fine. Fine! Whatever!”

Todd smiled at Dirk, or at least he tried to.

“Sorry for messing up.”

“No it’s–” But Todd was gone. The pain across Dirk’s body reduced as he gasped. “No. Please.”

“Dirk? Hey. Listen we're gonna, go to everyone and, we're gonna get him. Okay? You can't, you have to get off the ground. You're- we'll ignore that you're covered in blood. That's fine. Dirk?” Amanda crouched down next to him, trying to pull him up.

“Amanda, wait.” Friedverse moved forward, carefully placing his hand on Dirk’s chest, the same blue light from earlier flowed down his arm and across Dirk’s chest, wiping away the blood and the bruising. Dirk gasped and sat back.

“Are you okay?” they asked. Dirk shook his head.

“No, but we don’t have time. We have to go.” Dirk pushed himself off the floor, glancing over at Amanda.

“You said you knew where he was?” he asked.

“Yeah. We used to like, mess around there as teenagers. It was a thing.” Dirk glared over at Friedverse.

“Of course it was. Can you get us all there?” Friedverse shook their head.

“That’s too many people. And whatever is blocking me. It would not be good to teleport there.” They frowned. “What about the others, the three that are missing?”

“Wait, like, I know Vogel, man. He like, loves Dirk. He's his favorite brother. He'd be trying to find him too. Probably Bart and Ethan too but they're always disappearing, so. Maybe they'd be there?” She nodded her head. “It doesn't take that long to drive there. Maybe like a few hours?”

“That’s too close. What if, what if just you and I went to get him, and we got close and then, stole a car or something.” Dirk asked, but Friedverse was shaking their head.

“The scenarios where that is the course of action end in death. Lots of death. No matter what happens. We all have to go, it’s the only one that is even remotely achievable.” Friedverse said, glancing over at Amanda. “But not with the wand. None of those ended well either.”

“Noted.” She snatched up Dirk's jacket, shoving it at him. “We're taking the van. The boys can shift when we get there.” She turned back to Friedverse. “Hey dumbass, you gonna take us back to them or what?”

“Yes, right, of course. Dirk, are you ready to go?” They glanced up at Dirk who was still looking down to where Todd had been. He glanced up and nodded.

“Yes, let’s go.” They blinked out of the apartment.

* * *

**Honestly, this is our fault.**

Vogel paused to look up at the buildings in front of them, the moon just barely bright enough through the clouds, which would hopefully clear later, to illuminate the area. They all looked abandoned, but Vogel knew better. He could smell the leftover energy of heavy emotions somewhere close, both in proximity and time. He gripped his bat tighter.

“This is that place, man.”

“This… does not surprise me at all. This place is terrifying. Why is this still a thing?” Ethan was frowning at the buildings, trying to to imagine the horrors that mental hospitals used to be.

He imagined that they were probably somewhat like Blackwing.

Bart hadn't moved since the buildings came fully into view, and was grabbing onto Ethan's arm. Vogel kept taking steps forward, narrowing his eyes at the strange emotions he could just barely make out.

“Eth.”

“Yeah, Bart?” He continued to watch Vogel as Bart pulled on his arm.

“Someone in there. Gots to kill them. I knows it. Someone all important.” Bart tugged at his arm harder.

“Yeah see, nope. I know you’re like invulnerable, and I’m like token invulnerable. And– Vogel, wait, come back here! We can’t just run into a horror movie!” Vogel had suddenly broken out into a sprint for the door, stopping only to find it locked. After a hard kick didn't open it, he frowned. The door looked old enough; it should be opening.

“There's some spooky stuff going on here, guys! The door is like magic or something!” Vogel swung his bat on it; nothing happened.

“It probably is! Don’t, wait! We can’t just go, breaking stuff. There’s– we– okay look. There is a god, somewhere around here. And he took Todd. That should scare us, yes?” Ethan placed himself between Vogel and the door, holding his hands up pleadingly. Vogel lowered his bat with a frustrated expression.

“I'm only scared of losing stuff! Gods are like, not a thing man!” He tried to push Ethan out of the way with his bat, albeit gently.

“No, they are. Dirk’s dated one. This one’s uncle, in fact! Which, is, weird.” Ethan trailed off, briefly losing his momentum. “But that’s not the point! If we don’t make a plan we’re going to lose Todd. Right?”

Vogel seemed upset by this.

“Pup isn't getting lost! You're getting lost! Or, not actually, because Bart doesn't want that, but like- I'm not letting him be lost, man! Brit wants him found!” Vogel stomped the ground; the only other alternative was hitting either Ethan or the door again.

“I know, and I want him found too. I mean less than Dirk, but that’s, again, not the point. But we have to be smart about this we can’t just–” The sound of a car approaching on the gravel road drew all of their attentions. “Right, new plan. Hide!”

“That's a good plan! But everywhere is open!” Vogel yipped as Bart dragged both him and Ethan into a ditch that they hadn't seen, and they both shared a look behind Bart's head. They were gripping onto their knife tightly.

“Gots to kill 'em.”

“I think that will draw unwanted attention that we can’t afford. Maybe later? After there are, fewer of them?” Ethan hissed, watching a small group of people appear and head for the door they had just been standing in front of. They were just able to make out the conversation, and it didn't do anything to reassure them.

“Why does he want a potion, anyway? He hates our shit.” The woman was frowning, stalking up the dirt path before the other figure had even closed the car door. Once the car was locked, the figure ran after her.

“He's paying us two hundred for it, Jennings. Fucking give it to him and bail.” The other figure sounded tired.

“I work here, asshat. Gods give good ass pay. Mostly.”

Vogel frowned.

“What's that mean!?”

“It means we’re in the right place.” Ethan grumbled. The three of them ducked down as the two witches walked closer.

The woman stopped, sighing loudly.

“Fuck. I left my phone in the car. Give this to that asshole wolf.”

“You can't just-”

“I can do whatever, Joseph. Hand it and pocket the damn money.” The woman, Jennings, snapped at him. Mumbling incoherently, the figure named Joseph stalked into the biggest building. They couldn't see inside from the angle they were at, but during the moments the door was open, the entire grounds seemed to illuminate.

Yeah, that was normal.

Bart grunted, turning to Ethan.

“Cans I now?”

“Yup, sure, Vogel, door!” Ethan launched himself out of the ditch and raced towards the door, watching it swing slowly closed. Vogel jammed his bat where it would have clicked shut, and they were able to barely catch it before it locked them out again. Behind them, there was a brief screaming from Jennings before they heard something wet fall to the ground. Vogel turned to Ethan proudly.

“I got the door!”

“You did, now let’s, holy shit.” Ethan held the door open gaping inside. Vogel poked his head around and whistled as Bart reappeared.

“Thats seems wrong.” Bart frowned.

“Yeah, it’s, bigger, on the inside.” Ethan mumbled, briefly leaning back to look at the building before looking back down the very bright white hall. There was an endless amount of openings, leading to what looked like other hallways.

“Woah. This is big, man. How do we find Pup here?” Vogel stepped inside, gasping at the bright white color. It rubbed him the wrong way, and he shifted his weight between his feet as he was reminded of a different, very sharp white hallway from when he was shorter.

“Anyone got any string?” Ethan asked, stepping inside and looking towards the first door. The other two shook their heads.

“Yo, like, maybe this was the thing that isn't a good idea. A bad one.” Vogel frowned, his bat dangling at his side.

“Oh now we’re listening to Ethan is that it?” Ethan turned and frowned. “Come on. We’ve made it this far and, nobodies dead yet. Well, I mean, those two witches, and that ice cream shop guy, and– and you shouldn’t try to do a pep talk when Bart’s a long. No offense. But look, we’re in the right spot. We have to be.”

Bart was staring at one of the halls to their right.

“We's goin’ this way.” Vogel didn't look happy.

“That’s the way to Todd?” Ethan asked, frowning down the hall.

“No. Somethin’ else. Gots to go kill it.”

“Okay, but maybe we could find– and they’re not listening. Look Vogel. Just stay here, and stay out of sight and we’ll come back with Todd. More than likely. Just, don’t get captured or something.” Ethan turned to look at Bart briefly before turning back once more.

“Are you going to be okay?” Ethan asked. Vogel faltered for a moment, but then nodded, raising his bat.

“I'll be cool, name guy! I'm like, a ninja! Keep Pup safe!” He was smiling brightly again.

“We’ll find him. We’ll be right back.” Ethan turned and raced down the hall after Bart just as they turned a corner.

If there was one thing you should never do, it's expect a Rowdy to stay still.

Vogel took off in the opposite direction at once, his bat clutched tightly in his hands as he contemplated whether to just start breaking things. He thought that maybe Boss wouldn't like that, if he was here, so he didn't. Instead, he jumped from corner to corner. Eventually, what seemed like an endless amount of time had passed without incident.

Well, now he was just bored.

He stopped dead as he passed a room that had been left unlocked, but frowned again. It looked boring. All he could see from this angle was some sort of place to sit. Kicking the door open as quickly and quietly as he could, his face lit up as he took in the mass amounts of electronics inside the room.

Oh, this was _perfect._

He raised his bat to smash the thing nearest to him, the television, but then frowned. There was a sort of energy in the room that tasted familiar. It tasted almost like Todd. And it wasn't old!

Vogel beamed.

“See! I knew Pup's close! I'm super smart!” Vogel brought down his bat, and with a shatter, the television screen broke into pieces. “What would Boss do? Probably be happy! Then find him. Then more happy stuff! Man, Boss loves being happy.”

Vogel turned to the door, narrowing his eyes as new energies became discernable. There were a few of them, but Vogel couldn't make out exactly how many there were. It wouldn't be that big of a problem.

Rolling his bat in his hands, a manic growl escaped Vogel's lips.

This was going to be fun.

* * *

**Our Best Memories Are Often Wrong**

When Todd woke up, the first thing he noticed was a dull ache all over his body. He frowned at the ceiling - when had he gotten onto the bed? He couldn't remember much after he'd stopped talking to Dirk, and in all honesty, he couldn't remember a lot of that part either. After the room with Ken, everything began to get fuzzy. All he was aware of was the sharp memory of pain. It sent a chill down his spine as the memories banged against his head, becoming clearer with each second.

Oh.

There was blood on the sheets, and his shirt had become soaked with it overnight. He didn't think he was still bleeding, in fact he was sure, but his entire left side was covered in so much blood that it had seeped into the tops of his pants. How was he even still alive?

He groaned. The goddamn universe, back at its cruel little pranks. At least it was punchable now.

Yeah, that was definitely one of the weirdest things about this whole situation. He heard the door click open, and Todd closed his eyes before Adrien came into view. He was aware, with an odd sort of scrutiny, that Adrien was looking above him.

He didn't like it. He didn't like it at all.

“I’d say you died while you slept, but I can hear your sad excuse of a heartbeat.” His voice bounced off the walls, grating against Todd’s ears. He cringed, glancing up at him.

“Yeah, it's-” He paused, his voice growing quieter. “Sorry about that.”

“As well you should be. So, how's Dirk, did you two say goodbye? Confess your undying love for each other of whatever nonsense kids are into these days?” He asked, glancing down, his eyes filled with boredom. Todd tried to shrug, but it sent pain shooting through his arm.

“It's- he's fine.” His voice was just a little too high. “Just, talking. About things. Like the universe. And, and, like. Uh…” Todd looked around in his memories for what else they'd discussed that wouldn't get him in into trouble; he had to tell Adrien everything he could before he told him to.

He found nothing useful.

“Things, huh? Like what? What’s the hot gossip from the Gently-Brotzman residence?” Adrien, leaned against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest. Todd pushed himself up, frowning at the pain. Why was it still there?

“Well like, I was bleeding. That, sort of made him upset.” He looked away, avoiding Adrien's gaze.

“He could see you? That’s quite impressive, for someone, like yourself.” Adrien snorted, watching Todd carefully. Todd shifted in his bed, uncomfortable at the comment.

“Yeah. I'm not that good at, that sort of thing.”

“No you’re certainly not. Tell me about the universe. What did you talk about there? How it drags him around or whatever?”

Todd hunched over, the words rising in his throat at Adrien's command.

“It's possessing some ass- someone I don't like.” He bit his lip. “I don't know. It's weird. I- I don't know.”

“This universe is a person? Mm, might just move my plans around and kill them now. It would make the next two months easier.” He pushed off from the wall and moved to stand in front of Todd. “What about you? What would make your life easier? Or, at least, what’s left of it anyway.” Adrien laughed lightly, placing his hands into his back pockets and leaning backwards slightly.

“Please don't.” Todd muttered, not a paying attention to what he was saying. When he realized, he shot up straight. “I mean, I mean- I, like, I'm not. You're fine. It's fine. Everything's fine. Everything's okay.” He exhaled in a panic.

“That definitely sounds fine. Please don’t what?” Adrien raised an eyebrow, his grin widening.

“Nothing.” Todd frowned even deeper. “You don't, I mean, he's like, possessing a dumbass. It'll be- everything's fine.”

“Oh I see, you’re worried about the universe. Is that it?” Adrien snorted.

“No? Maybe? I guess? The universe is important, to like, existence?”

“Well, you’re only mostly wrong. The universe is important to _your_ existence. Not to mine. They have no control over the deities. Never have, never will. We exist outside the universe’s, influence. Isn’t that fun?”

“Not really.” Todd mumbled, staring at the wall.

“I’m sure that’s how the Greeks felt when they fell to the Roman Empire. It’s the same concept. The universe came along, pushed out the old order, and took over. Now, I’ll be pushing out the universe. So simple, even you could understand it.” Adrien moved forward, brushing his knee against Todd’s. “How’s the knee?”

Todd inhaled sharply. In all honesty, it still ached when Adrien did that.

“Fine. It's cool.” Adrien tsked, looking down.

“It certainly looks fine. How about we test it, yeah?” he pulled one of his hands from his pocket and went to lean down.

“Uh-” Todd jerked back, bracing against the wall before he could stop himself. He took a breath.

“So, ‘no Adrien, my knee still hurts’. Correct?”

“It's really, not a big deal.” Todd shrugged again, mumbling. “It's fine.”

Adrien was too close.

“Why not just say that then?” Adrien asked, returning his hand to his back pocket, frowning down at Todd. Todd went to day something, but upon opening his mouth, found that he didn't know what.

This was okay. He was okay. He had to keep repeating that, because it sure as hell wasn't true.

“Are you always silent when people ask you questions? That seems rather rude. Wouldn’t you say?” Adrien smiled, watching Todd squirm. He exhaled.

“Rude? I don't know, I mean. Rude is like, a strong word. Maybe, inconvenient. But like, not rude. Not rude.” Rude was bad. Todd knew that much.

Rude was very, very bad.

“Well, you know all about being inconvenient, don’t you. For me, for your friends, for your dear Dirk. It must be so inconvenient to be tied down to you.” Adrien snorted, leaning back on his heel.

The image of Dirk from a few hours prior, and the things he said, filled his mind.

He was okay. He was fine.

“I don't know, I mean. I'm, fine. I'm a, not like, a terrible person.” He didn't glance up at Adrien; he knew exactly what he looked like right now. And he didn't want to see it.

“Ah, that’s cute. Did he tell you that? Try to make you feel better about being useless? I promise, it was said out of pity. And if anyone would know it would be me. I’ve been around the bend just a few more times than you. That’s just how people are, Todd.” Todd didn't answer. He wasn't right. Dirk would never do that to him. He was fine.

Right?

He wasn't sure.

He took a breath, trying to steady himself. Adrien was trying to shake him up, like usual. He should at least be allowed his dignity before he… Well.

“I bet I could guess what he said. Probably told you that everything was going to be okay. That he loved you. That he cared. Probably made some promises that you know he’s not going to keep. And probably told you you were amazing or something. Or wait, he’s British. I bet he said you were _fantastic_.” Adrien snorted, as he mocked a British accent. Todd frowned.

“No.” But his voice was too high. “He's- he's not, Dirk isn't. Don't, talk about him.”

“Or what? You’ll bleed on me? So far, that’s all you’ve shown you’re good at. Did you bleed on him?”

“No!” Todd was visibly upset now, pressed up against the far wall on the bed to keep a distance from Adrien. He didn't seem to want to comply with Todd's wishes, though.

“Todd Brotzman, an unnecessary weight lifted from Dirk’s shoulders, and you bled all over him. I’m sure he really appreciates the _inconvenience_.”

“Shut up!”

Todd stopped dead, processing his own words.

The universe was really put to get him this weekend, wasn't it?

“Are you sure?” Adrien asked, smiling down at him. “Sure that’s what you want to say?”

“What? No. No, it's- no. No. I'm not-” Todd stopped talking, his chest already becoming tight as Adrien's smile widened.

Everything was fine.

“Because, you seemed pretty confident a moment ago. What happened to that?” He moved forward to the edge of the bed, the closest he could get without actually climbing onto the bed with Todd. Todd shook his head, glancing around the room for an answer.

“I'm not, like, it's. It's cool, man. I'm cool. Everything's cool.” He was more talking to himself than anything else. He was much too close. He didn't like it. Adrien raised his eyebrow and made a hmph noise.

“Stand up.” Adrien took a couple steps back and waited. Todd opened his mouth to protest as he stood up; he wasn't sure his knee would agree with this action. He guessed correctly, and as soon as he put pressure on the leg, he fell right into Adrien.

“Todd, I had no idea you had fallen for me.” Adrien laughed as he let go of Todd, and watched him fall the rest of the way to the floor.

“I thought you said your knee was fine.” Todd took a breath before he started involuntarily shaking. Adrien would just love that.

Stupid gods.

“It _is._ I'm cool. My leg's cool.” Everything was not, in fact, cool. His knee felt like it was on fire. Adrien might actually have popped it out last night, and there was enough of a difference between that and a serious injury to stop it from properly healing.

“So, standing should be no problem. Want to try it again?” Adrien asked, looking down at him.

“Okay, maybe like, it's sort of, not all that fine. But I'm not, dead. From it? That counts.” He had started to pick up Dirk's habit of rambling.

“Counts towards what? Stand up. Before I make you stand up.” Todd grunted as he got to his feet again, holding onto the bed frame to stop himself from falling anywhere near Adrien.

Yeah, there was something off with his knee. This was fun.

This was fine.

“That doesn’t seem like it healed properly. Maybe it needs encouragement.” Adrien began to slide his leg backwards, his smile widening. Todd fell back onto the bed, backing up.

“You know, not much like, actually healed that well. So, we can just, not, do anything. We could just like, sit and not deal with it.” That was a terrible idea. One of his worst. Adrien laughed.

“Sit and chat. Sure. Want to tell me about the sibling you’re hiding?” He moved forward, blocking Todd’s forward escape from the bed. Todd frowned as he complied, and stopped backing away.

He couldn't tell him about Amanda.

Amanda would kick his ass.

And then she'd kick Todd's ass for getting kidnapped.

“A sibling. It's like, not really a thing. I don't, I don't like-”

“Think carefully, about the next couple of words. Because I know when you’re lying. So, what would you like to say, Todd?” Adrien glared down at him. Todd faltered, holding his knee to stop the nonexistent fire.

So he thought.

“We're- she's sort of mad at me. It's not really a thing, between us, right now.” Todd glanced up at him.

“She. So you have a sister. That’s interesting. Anything like you?”

“Oh, no. No. She's- a lot different. Better. At like, everything. She once like, did a thing with a snail. She's, more talented at that kind of stuff.” Todd looked to the side. Don't mention a name. Don't mention a name. That was all he had left.

“A snail? Like the snail witch from that fairy tale land. Is your sister the apprentice you mentioned, the one who opened the doorway?” Adrien was smiling, but it was different, crueler.

Todd didn't know what to say next.

“Uh…”

Shit.

“Mm, interesting. And she’s here? I assume she’s here, because if she was somewhere I couldn’t get, you would probably be less concerned. Maybe she can help me take over the world. I mean, if what you’ve told me is true, she’s already far more impressive than you.”

This time, Todd snorted.

“Yeah, good luck with that. She's- angry. At a lot of stuff. Gods included. That's a, long story. Involving Loki.” Todd loved that story, but Amanda hated it.

“Oh, she hates my father. Shouldn’t be too hard to get her on my side. Especially if I just do what I did with you.”

“What? No!” Todd took a breath. “Man, she'd like- you have no idea. Amanda doesn't just-”

“Amanda. I like it. Amanda and Adrien. Has a nice ring, don’t you think?” Adrien’s grin chilled Todd’s blood.

At least he couldn't be any creepier to Amanda than he was to him. Amanda at least had practice dealing with creepy guys; she liked to send the agency selfies with the unconscious bodies of creeps she'd knocked out. It was a weekly highlight.

“You can't- man, I really don't think you're understanding exactly how much, she would like, not lose. Maybe not win, but she doesn't lose. Not like I do.” Todd’s voice got quieter as he talked, the expression on Adrien's face stopping him.

Oh, he didn't like that.

“If I had a dollar for everytime someone told me they couldn’t lose. Well, there’d be a lot more gods in the world if it were true.” Adrien laughed lightly. “And I highly doubt your sister is a goddess. Not with you as a brother.” Todd shuddered.

“Not really a god. She's better.” Finally, he smiled too. “She's one of The Rowdy Three.”

Screw it. He'd let Amanda kick Adrien's ass.

“Those stupid, anarchist, pups? That’s adorable.” Adrien laughed.

“You asked who my pack was in the shop, I mean. That's, them yeah.”

“Oh well that explains it. The pack for misfits werewolves. Makes sense that they’d have you and the freak with them.”

Todd nearly had to cover his mouth to stop himself from growling.

“Dirk isn't a freak.” He stared resolutely at the wall. He was fine. This was fine.

He was _fine_.

“Oh, that hit a nerve. Does he not like that word? Freak?” Adrien moved over to the wall, leaning against it with his shoulder. “How does he deal with being a freak twice over? I’m sure he’s spent his whole life wishing to be normal and then he became a werewolf. For you? I assume. Oh! Or was it your fault? Like everything else?”

“Blackwing is _not_ my-” Todd stopped for a moment, taking a breath before he got too loud. “That's not. That's his business, not mine. Or- he's not a, whatever.” Todd hated people using that word. It got such a rise out of Dirk, naturally he would get upset. He needed to protect Dirk.

“He’s not what? A freak? Weird? Unnatural? An abomination? A monster?”

“Fuck _off!”_ Todd clenched his teeth together to try and calm himself.

Shit.

_Shit._

“There it is. Monster. Let me guess, it’s personal business, yeah?” Adrien laughed, pushing off from the wall. “Well, I don’t know about him, but, I’ve known quite a few monsters. What do you think Todd, does the name still fit your blessed little Dirk Gently?” Adrien grabbed Todd’s ankle, pulling him sharply off the bed. His knee screamed along with his shoulder as he hit the ground. As usual, his hand was useless at his side. He cringed away from Adrien.

“What? He's- Dirk's, he's not-”

“Not what, Todd? What is Dirk not?” Adrien bent down pulling Todd up by his hair, and smiling down at him. “A monster? Are you sure?”

“He's way better than you!” Todd grabbed at Adrien's hand with the one he could still move, trying to loosen his grip.

It didn't seem to be working.

Adrien rolled his eyes, bringing his other hand up and gripping tight to Todd’s shoulder. Todd swore loudly as the pain from the badly healed injury sparked, set off by the slightest touch.

He was fine. He was _fine_.

“You’re worse than I imagined. You’re not just broken, you’re diseased. You infect everyone you get near. And your love of them keeps you from accepting that. I could help with that. If you would like.”

“Shut up!” Todd pulled at him, his shoulder bringing tears to his eyes.

He was fine.

“Perhaps we start with something easy. Like forgetting where you are. Did you know I could make you do that?” Adrien laughed, tightening his grip on Todd’s shoulder. Todd stopped pulling at his hand for a moment.

“What?”

“Oh you don’t, well, this will be fun. Where should we start? Family, friends, loved ones, your choice.”

“Wait wait Adrien. Stop. This isn't-”

“You will forget why you’re upset.” Adrien smiled.

“What?” Todd stopped, glancing sideways.

Oh, _shit._

“Shit. What- what the, that's. Not cool. Now I don't even know why I'm. I hate you.” Todd deadpanned, frowning.

Well, this was just perfectly grand. What else was Adrien hiding from him?

“What next do you think? Something bigger, your family maybe? That could be fun.”

“No no, no Adrien let's, let's not do this. This is a bad idea. Super bad idea. Let's just like, chill or something that doesn't…” He grimaced at the ever present pain in his shoulder as Adrien gripped it tighter.

“Maybe we’ll keep going small. How did you meet Dirk again?”

“Stop, please, don't- We don't have to…” He stopped. “Don't make me forget him.” Great, now he was crying.

Perfect.

This was fine.

“You forget, I don’t take orders. Not from you. Forget your first moon with Dirk.” Adrien smiled, pushing Todd backwards onto the bed. He fell, not entirely sure why he was so upset. Why he was crying.

_Dirk._

“Dirk. No no this is, this is fine. Everything is, okay. Everything is okay.” He muttered to himself, hiding his head in his damaged hands.

“Let’s test that theory. When did you and Dirk finally start dating, properly? Can you remember that, Todd?”

“Stop please- let me, keep him. Adrien.” He gazed up at him, his eyes nearly red.

“Forget finding him before the Bergsberg Case.” Adrien smiled, kneeling down in front of Todd. He barely contained a sob, blinking at the missing moment in his mind's eye. He needed those moments. They were what made Dirk and him work together. They made up the only good part of his life, really. The only parts that didn't suck.

Parts like this one.

“Dirk…”

“How did he get to Bergsberg Todd, do you remember?” Todd nodded.

“Please stop.” He clenched his right hand in what he was pretty sure was anger. This wasn't _fair_. He needed what Adrien was taking. They made Todd better. They made him a nice person. A happier person. They gave Dirk to him. Of course Adrien would take that away from him.

This was his fault. This was Todd's fault.

And Todd was pissed.

“Oh, well, I could just take it all instead of piece by piece. Does that sound nicer?” Adrien snorted. Todd started shaking again.

“Man please just, stop, I. I need Dirk. I need those.” He spoke quietly, not looking in Adrien's direction.

“Are you sure? You don’t seem any different without them. In fact you seem like a much angerier person. Someone I might actually like to be around. Maybe you weren’t the weak one.”

“Leave him alone!” Todd exhaled sharply, closing his eyes. “Leave Dirk, out of this.”

“I’m not the one who dragged him into this, Todd. You did. Or did you _forget_?” Adrien grabbed the front of Todd’s shirt and pulled him forward, holding him inches from his nose.

“If you want to continue to be defiant, I will continue to pick away at your life. Are we clear?”

“ _Crystal.”_

“Fantastic. Now, stand up.” Adrien released his shirt and walked towards the door. Todd growled as he stumbled back into the wall, his knee giving out.

“My knee's still out of business, asshole.” Todd grabbed at his leg to try and ease the tension. It just wouldn't cooperate with him the way he wanted, and now even his hands were shaking in anger, which only made it worse.

“I don’t recall telling you to forget your manners. Which part was that?” Adrien turned back, eyebrow raised, smile gone.

“The part where my knee almost killed me before your shitty sacrifice did.” He rubbed his knee; something definitely felt out of place, both in his head and his knee. Adrien would have a field day finding that out.

“Interesting. Let’s try a new approach. Stand up straight. And be silent.” Adrien stalked forward, watching Todd carefully. He nearly fell back over as he got to his feet again, glaring at him.

“See we're changing tactic again.” His throat burned as he spoke; he was disobeying a direct order.

“Lose the attitude. Or I will make you wish you didn’t know what attitude meant. Tell me, what was your first moon with Dirk like?” Adrien was standing dangerously close now. Todd's heart rate spiked rapidly with the proximity.

This was very, very bad.

“I don't know. It was a moon.” Todd narrowed his eyes, his head pounding as he tried to access something that wasn't there. He was… too angry to really notice it, though.

“Nothing of importance happen? You just, hung out?” Adrien took a deep breath his nose and snorted lightly.

“There is, no way, for me to know the answer.” Todd hugged the wall, a deep pit forming in his stomach. His neck was craning to keep eye contact with Adrien.

“Well, that’s not necessarily true. You know the answer, you just can’t remember the answer. There’s a difference. So, let’s add a new layer to the things you don’t know. Remember what made you so upset to start with.” Todd gasped, falling against the wall as most of the last twenty four hours slammed into him like a brick to the face.

This was not fine.

This was very not fine.

He couldn't breathe.

“Let me guess, Dirk has been helping keep you sane right? The last couple of days? The hope of seeing him again pushing you forward?”

“Shut up.” He dragged out the first letter, stuttering as he tried to fight against the panic in his chest. Adrien was way too close to him, and it instilled something very deep and very bad in him.

He laughed.

“Embracing the crazy in the final moments, I can appreciate that. What’s so funny?”

“You fucking suck, man.”

Great. He'd finally lost it.

“Call Dirk.” Adrien growled. Todd flipped him the middle finger, the anger still rising over the panic. He was going to die anyway.

“Stop being angry and call Dirk.” Adrien said again, his voice far too even. Todd gave a frustrated sigh.

“It'll like, stop me healing.”

“I am fully aware of how bonds work. If I tell you a third time, I’m going to break something. I’m thinking memory of your sister.”

“ _Fine._ ” Todd leaned his head against the wall. “Dirk, uh, there's a thing, I guess. You have to be here.” The familiar pull of Dirk's presence filled his mind, and he could hear the familiar chatter of the Rowdy van around him. He glared at Adrien. “Happy?”

“I don’t know, am I Dirk?” Adrien smiled.

_“No, it's Todd. And a really weird person with him- wait, is that the god?”_

Todd snorted.

“I guess, man.”

“Perfect, be quiet. Dirk, this is how this is going to work. Everytime Todd doesn’t do what I say, I’m going to chip away at a piece of his memories. And you’re going to listen until he doesn’t remember who you are. How does that sound?” Adrien dropped his hand onto Todd’s shoulder and squeezed tightly.

_“You know, I think I'm starting to see why Todd hates him now. Can we drive faster?”_

“Fuck, Adrien! Let go!” Todd grabbed his shoulder, groaning.

“See, that was rude. Forget the first time you met Dirk.” Adrien smiled, tightening his grip on Todd’s shoulder. Todd cried out, blinking.

_“Todd. Todd?”_

“How did you meet Dirk, Todd? Tell me that story.” Adrien said, looking down. Todd frowned.

“Dirk. Leave. Now.” Todd threw something incorporeal at Dirk, trying to get him to go farther away.

Fucking Adrien.

“That’s not what I said, Todd. Do not try to get him to leave. And go ahead and forget the latest case you worked.”

The latest case was… he didn't know. He knew it had something to do with a hole in Farah's roof, and a lot of paperwork, but he couldn't remember any of the details. He felt Dirk shrink away, distress rising from wherever he was.

This wasn't happening.

“Screw off, Adrien.” Todd ducked under him, falling back onto the bed again.

“That’s still not what I told you to do. Forget helping Dirk with nightmares. And tell me the story of how you met.” Todd shook his head, whining at Dirk's panic as it rose up in his own chest.

“I can't. I don't know. It's not-” He stopped moving. “I'm sorry. I'll listen, just- it's hurting him.”

“I’ll stop when you tell me the story. Forget his last name.” Adrien loomed over Todd, smiling down.

_“Todd? Todd!”_ The sound stopped for a moment. _“Right right, Amanda. Todd, I- I broke into your apartment. You, threw a shoe at me? Todd?”_

He groaned.

“He… broke… into my place?” Todd narrowed his eyes. That didn't sound right.

“Really? You don’t sound too sure about that. What happened next?” Adrien asked.

“I- I threw something at him. My shoe?”

_“Yes, which was quite rude, actually- oh, yes, sorry. We got into a fight and then you kicked me out.”_

“My, shoe. And then we fought. And then I threw him out. I hated him back then. I don't know though, he's pretty cool.” Todd laid motionless on the bed, staring into nothing.

“Only pretty cool? Nothing more? That seems hard, for you Dirk. How are you holding up?” Adrien laughed lightly.

_“Oh, I definitely hate him. That is-”_

“Well he's not stopping Dirk so there isn't much to do about it.” Todd grumbled quietly at him, acutely aware of how close Adrien was to him. Jesus Christ, he was in love with a dumbass.

“I’ll take it Dirk is doing fine. Shall we continue? Let’s try standing again. Up.” Todd frowned as he got to his feet. His knee was finally holding up, but that didn't make it any less painful. He exhaled.

Well, this was fun.

“Impressive. Dirk, did Todd tell you the plan?” Adrien said as he smirked down, watching Todd sway slightly. Todd shook his head; he'd been too busy bleeding out to do much talking the last time.

“Well, that’s very inconsiderate Todd. Tell Dirk the plan for today.”

“I'm going to- uh, I'm, leaving later. It's a thing.” He frowned up at Adrien.

“Leaving, that’s adorable. Forget what Dirk fears most.” Adrien said as he slid his hands into his back pockets, watching Todd carefully. Todd made a small noise, unsure what to say.

“I- he, what?”

Todd couldn't remember what he was going to say, and for once, Dirk wasn't speaking either.

“Now, Todd. Do you happen to recall why you’ll be _leaving_?” Adrien asked, smiling at him. Todd glared.

“There's the part where you're like, killing me. That counts as leaving.”

_“It most certainly does. And it most certainly- where is Friedverse? I want to talk to him.”_

“And what will killing you achieve?” Adrien asked, raising an eyebrow as he watched Todd. Todd opened his mouth to speak.

“Dude I'm like, seriously listening, but no one told me that. I have no clue. Sorry.” Todd shrugged with one shoulder. “Or, I mean, no one _told_ me. I have like, an idea though? Involving bringing some guy back to life? I can't remember who he is.”

“Interesting. You can’t remember the name of a person, after being told to forget something that could be construed as the name of a person. Keeping up there Dirk?” Adrien smiled, leaning forward slightly.

_“Tragically.”_

“He's like, not happy.” Todd wasn't happy either, but Adrien already knew that. As long as Dirk was here to keep him steady, he could keep from completely breaking down from the panic. Dirk would keep him up.

“I wouldn’t expect anything less. Dirk, what do you think Priest is going to do first when he comes back? My money's on try to kill you.” Adrien said. Dirk's panic spiked, making Todd falter, his face falling.

Dirk didn't say anything.

“Todd, do you know why Dirk is upset?” Todd shook his head, the fear in Dirk spiking. It made it's was into Todd's chest, and suddenly, he wasn't so sure that he could continue being okay.

“But you care for him, you would never do anything intentional to make him upset, correct?” Adrien was grinning at him, his canines visible. Todd hesitated.

“I- no, I wouldn't. He's my-” Todd wasn’t totally sure. They were something, but, there were pieces missing.

“Can’t even remember a simple title. Do you know what Dirk is most afraid of?”

“No, I- this, isn't like, cool. Can we, move on, maybe?” Todd didn't like this at all, and he for sure didn't like the way that Dirk wasn't speaking. Dirk was always talking, he never stopped. But now he couldn't hear a word, and it was unnerving.

Something was missing.

“Oh that’s right, you can’t remember. I can fix that. Remember everything that you have forgotten today.” Adrien let out a chuckle as he watched Todd.

Oh gosh. Oh no. Dirk hated him. Dirk definitely hated him. He'd made his own boyfriend hate him. He was such an _asshole._

Todd realized he was shaking again.

“Dirk.”

_“Todd?”_

“Be quiet. Dirk, I assume you’re still there. Todd’s going to have to go in a moment, things to do, people to bring back from the dead. But I just wanted to let you know that I look forward to meeting you. And tell Amanda I say hello. Todd, say goodbye.”

_“Todd, don't listen to him. We're only-”_

“Bye, Dirk. Thanks. I-” He looked up at Adrien. “To the moon and back, man.”

He cut the connection dead.

“That’s cute. That little, whatever it is. Are you going to continue to be a problem?” Adrien moved forward slowly. Todd buried his head in the bloodied sheets, hiding his gaze from Adrien's. He felt him get closer, and despite wanting to shrink away, Todd didn't move. He couldn't find any of the mental energy needed for the task.

“Am I to take the silence as acceptance?” Adrien growled. Todd's breath left him as he shut his eyes tightly.

“I- yeah, I guess.” Todd's voice was shaking, just ever so slightly, at the hostility in Adrien's voice. He couldn't help it; Adrien was terrifying when Todd wasn't pissed.

“Fantastic. Stand up. This room is giving me a headache.” Adrien turned back to the door, but paused, and turned back with a smile on his face. “Or does your knee still hurt? That would be boring, don't you think?”

Todd sighed as he placed his feet on the ground. What did it matter if his knee hurt?

“It’s fine.” He stood, his leg shaking slightly, but supporting his weight. Adrien tilted his head.

“And the shoulder?”

“It, it hurts, but I don’t need it to walk.” Todd said, feeling the phantom pains return.

“Maybe not. Come over here. Let me check it.” He gestured to Todd, telling him to come closer. Todd bit the inside of his lip as he walked forward, limping slightly. Adrien sighed at Todd's slow pace, and reached out to pull him in closer.

He raised a finger, pointing for him not to make a sound. Still staring at him, Adrien peeled back the blood soaked layers of his flannel, torn to pieces over his shoulder, and frowned down at the rough scarring. Laughing quietly, he shook his head.

“Now, that didn't heal right, did it?” He smirked at Todd, waiting for him to answer.

“I guess not.” Todd sighed.

“And why would that be? I know you're capable of healing. It's the one thing you can do, I assume.” He glanced back at the bite mark. “Werewolves don't leave scars like this on their bodies. Not without trauma.”

“I don’t know what to tell you, Adrien.” Todd mumbled, glancing down at his shoulder slightly. Adrien laughed lightly, the atmosphere in the room changing quicker than Todd could keep up with. Adrien traced the scars on his shoulder.

“I'm sure you don't. You aren't particularly good with words, are you, Todd?”

“Please don’t touch it, it hurts.” Todd resisted the urge to pull his shoulder back.

“Since you're being so nice.” Adrien retracted his hand, frowning again as he looked down Todd's arm. “May I see your hand? Or do you want to sit down before your leg gives out?”

“Why the change?” Todd ask, lifting his hand slowly. Something that chilled Todd to the bone crept into Adrien's eyes.

“I'm bored. Or would you like another round? I'm happy to comply.” Adrien loomed over Todd, standing much too close for comfort.

“No, it’s– bored is fine. This is, fine.” Todd glanced down at his hand, the bruising somehow looking worse.

“We have time. And your leg is about to fail. What are you going to do about it, Todd?” Adrien crossed his arms, waiting. Todd wasn't sure exactly what he was waiting for, though. Adrien kept staring at him, not deviating away for a second.

“I guess if it gives out that’s what happens. We’ll, burn that bridge when we come to it.” Todd laughed lightly, adjusting his weight onto his non-injured leg. It helped, a little.

“I think you should sit down. I want to check your hand without you falling.” Adrien raised his hand, a grin creeping back onto his face. “Your choice.” He leaned in closer, and Todd realized that Adrien was quite literally holding Todd up by his arm.

“It doesn’t feel like a choice.” Todd mumbled, taking a step back toward the bed and stopping. If he put anymore weight on his leg, it was going to fail.

“I'm letting you choose. The floor or the bed. Unless you want me to tell you to sit down. You don't want to ignore something I'm telling you.”

“Floor works.” Todd collapsed, hitting the ground with a hard thunking sound. He gasped as the pain bloomed in his knee again, but not as bad as before.

Adrien shook his head.

“You're hopeless.” He crouched down next to Todd, taking a moment to look him up and down. After a second, he put out his hand. “Can I see your hand?”

He was too close.

Todd held out his hand, wincing as Adrien took it again. Fine was quickly turning into terrible. Or maybe that’s where it had started. Todd wasn’t sure anymore. Adrien didn't speak for a moment, taking in the patterns of bruising on Todd's hand. It still looked as awful as it did last night, and the amount of healing it had done definitely wasn't enough. He heard Adrien sigh.

“Can you move it? How much does it hurt?” Adrien was leaning in, a bit too close.

“Barely, and not as bad as it could.” Todd glared up at him, trying to see what his endgame was. Besides death and pain and the end of the world.

“I suppose it could hurt worse. That would be fun to test…” Adrien dropped his hand back into his lap, running his hand through his hair. “Not now. Maybe another time. You really do know how to get yourself into trouble, Todd. It's amazing, even to me. And I've been around a long, long time.” He smiled.

“So you’ve mentioned.” Todd carefully cradled his hand in his lap, glancing down at the blood stains around his knee. It couldn’t be long now, and then he would die. At least there was that to look forward to.

“I have.” He laughed. “I'd like to ask you a question. Are you going to answer?”

“Why not.” Todd said, still looking down. He froze as Adrien traced the area on his shoulder around his scar, not quite touching it, but enough to make Todd acutely aware of the action.

“You're about to die. Have you ever felt, unsatisfied with your life?” Adrien was speaking quietly now, and it made Todd tremble.

“Um, I mean, sure. I have regrets, but, they’re things that were my fault, and, I could have done them differently, but I didn’t. I, don’t really know, sure.” Todd said, glaring down at Adrien’s hand, dipping his shoulder slightly reflexively. Adrien paused, but continued soon after the moment had passed.

“That's not quite what I mean. You don't lead a boring life, but surely there's something missing from it?”

“I know what you meant.” He glanced up, meeting Adrien’s eyes, “And that’s not one of the things on my list. Sorry to disappoint.”

“I meant meaning, Todd. You seem to lack it. Although that isn't off the table either.” Adrien let go of his shoulder, leaning back. He watched Todd carefully as he shifted around, uncomfortable.

“I don’t know Adrien. I thought I had. I had, a reason, to keep going, but you damaged that pretty solidly, so, death doesn’t seem so bad I guess.” Todd looked back down at his hands, ignoring Adrien’s gaze.

“That’s the one tolerable thing about you. Telling you what to do just breaks you even more than you're already broken, and even that’s only fun for a short while. But _this.”_ Adrien paused, smiling at him. “This makes you cocky. I get to watch you find some sort of confidence, and then it gets fun.”

Todd glanced back up, frowning.

“I’m not, I’m not trying to be, I’m sorry.” A deep part of Todd told him running would be best. Running was the way to not die, but he couldn’t do it. Even if he could stand, he wouldn’t get more than two feet. “I’m sorry.”

Adrien looked positively gleeful.

“For once in your short life, you've done nothing. It's a miracle, really.” Adrien checked his watch, nodding. “Well, it looks like I woke you up too early. There are, different ways we could pass the time. It all depends.”

“On?” Todd asked, the panic still close to his chest. Adrien's hand was back on his shoulder, traveling up and near enough to his throat for Todd to close his eyes.

“Oh, I could make you do a great many things, probably. But we'll skip that for now. Why are you panicking?” Adrien's voice was a whisper now.

“I don’t know.” Todd tried to breathe evenly but failed, catching his breath in gasps. “I don’t, I’m sorry.”

“Poor little useless mortal. Can't catch a break.” He ran his fingers over Todd's collarbone. “You're shaking.”

“Please, stop.” Todd blinked a couple times, trying to clear his vision only realize that the clouding was tears. As he blinked his vision fractured, making the world spin.

“You're spiraling. Falling into that dark little ocean. Perhaps you think you can hide there. Can you hide from me in the water, Todd?” Adrien was still tracing his collar bone, and Todd was shaking so violently that his knee was hurting again.

“I’m not hiding. Please, just, stop. I can’t, something.” Think? Breathe? He wasn’t sure. But his chest was starting to hurt.

“I can stop touching you, or I can stop the panic. It's up to you to choose. Do you want me to leave you like this?” Adrien finally lifted his hand, brushing the hair out of Todd's eyes. “I suggest you choose. I'm bored.”

“Please stop, I don’t want, the touching, please, stop.” Todd pulled his head back slowly, finding it hard to focus on anything. He could stop his own panic attack. He was sure he could. Fairly positive.

Adrien lifted his hand away, still looming over him, frowning.

“How's that working for you?”

“Um, fine. Yeah, I. I’m fine.” Todd tried to take a breath but a sob escaped him. This was going very well.

“You aren't fine. You're broken. I can't fix you. But I can stop you from breaking further.” Adrien sighed, putting his hand to Todd's chest for a moment before pulling away again. “Your heart is going too fast.”

“No, it’s, I’m fine. I just need, something.” Todd closed his eyes, hearing his heart hammering in his chest.

Adrien leaned forward.

“Tell me if you want me to calm you down. I can't stop your fear, but I can make you think and breathe.” Todd could feel Adrien's breath on his neck.

“I, I can’t, I– please. I can’t. Help.” Todd felt his head spinning, he wasn’t getting enough air and if he continued breathing the way he was he would pass out, and that wasn’t something he couldn’t let happen. Not with Adrien right there. A hand pressed against his neck, not as an attack, but feeling his pulse.

Todd finally stopped breathing as Adrien leaned forward to kiss him, just as he'd done the day prior.

And then, his head stopped spinning.

Adrien leaned back, holding Todd's shoulder and frowning.

“Are you panicking now?”

“I don’t know.” Todd felt hollow. He could still hear his heart, but it was slowing, his breathing was evening out, but something was different. “Maybe. I don’t, don’t know.”

“You aren't shaking.” Adrien sounded matter of fact, smiling again.

“Yeah.” Todd looked down, his hands were still resting in his lap. Something was wrong. He just couldn’t pinpoint what it was.

“That should help the healing process. Anxiety can stop it from working the way it should. I assume you've been anxious, yes?” Adrien tilted his head. “I can see why Dirk liked you.”

“I’m glad one of us can.” Todd mumbled, watching as the bruising around his fingers seemed to lighten slightly.

“Perhaps I've sold him short. You would be… interesting, to have around. Maybe I can find a different wolf to use. What do you think, Todd.” He laughed. “Should I? You've made the past few days more interesting than the last few centuries. And you're already starting to act… accordingly.”

“I– no, no one should die for me. I’ll do it, it’s, it’s fine.”

“Oh not for _you_. For Priest, maybe. Or for me. You're just someone I picked up off the streets. But imagine what more time could turn you into.” Adrien paused, running his hand over the bruises.

“Please, just, let me do this, or, kill me, just, I don’t want to keep going.” Todd frowned slightly. He thought it might have been an exaggeration but, he was fine with the idea of ceasing. Of sleeping for more than a while.

“Only two days, and you've already cracked. That's new.” Adrien stood up, leaving Todd on the ground. “Now, we can't have that, can we?”

Adrien was farther away from him now, but Todd didn't bother to look over.

“Guess I’m more broken than you thought.” Todd tried to roll his shoulder with limited success. It should have healed by now.

“I said cracked.”

“What’s the difference?” Todd glanced up. Adrien had moved over to the door. Where was he going? Was it time? Adrien pointed at him.

“Don't move. I'll be right back. You're a mess.” Adrien didn't bother to close the door behind him this time, and honestly, he didn't have to.

Todd looked back down at his hands and felt the familiar push on the bond.

“Go away, Dirk.” He grumbled, pushing back. That didn’t seem to stop the pushing. Todd moaned, sending out the negative emotion he was feeling. Was it negative? He wasn’t sure. It certainly wasn’t positive. The sound of the van filled Todd’s ears and he sighed.

“I don’t want to talk. I said goodbye, can we just, not?”

_“Got ahold of your Pup, Brit?”_

_“Yes, I think so. I'm, nearly certain. Why do you even want to talk to him?”_

_“Ain't a thing, Brit.”_

“If I’m just going to listen to background chatter, I’m going to go back to what I was doing.” Because wallowing in self pity was a great way to spend the last hour or so of his life. What did it matter?

_“He's upset.”_

_“Figured. Listen up, Pup. Not far away, but you gotta watch out for Vogel. Can't pinpoint the kid down. Might be comin’ your way.”_

“Vogel? Why would, wait, you said he was missing right?” Todd frowned. The universe wouldn’t. He listened to Dirk translate to Martin.

_“Got it down pat. Ain't seen 'im since he went lookin’ for you. He's close, though. Think he got the address from the shop. You keep an eye out for him before he gets hurt.”_

“No, he can’t come here. Adrien, he’s changed his mind, he’s gonna look for someone else. Vogel can’t be anywhere near here.” The hollow feeling wasn’t allowing for panic but he would be if he could. “Dirk, you have to make sure you find him first.”

_“We've been trying for nearly two days. It's not working, obviously.”_

_“You keep him safe, Pup. We'll keep you safe in return. Ain't nothin’ can be done.”_

“No, Martin, I can’t. I can’t keep me safe. I can’t stand up. I can’t. Can’t the universe do something?”

_“Universe guy, got any help?”_

_“Not until we reach the inner circle of whatever’s blocking me. That sounds complicated. It’s really not. Why?”_

_“No Todd, I don't believe they can. Could you please stop talking before I let Amanda have a swing at you?”_

“Amanda’s with you?” There was the panic.

_“Well of course, Todd. She's rather adamant about tearing the entire place down. Also, something about punching a god. Not entirely clear on that one.”_

“No, Dirk. Listen. Keep Amanda away from here. Adrien, he, he’s got some crazy plans, and they now involve Amanda. And it’s my fault. But, you can keep her safe. Please.” The tears had returned and Todd was finding it difficult to see his hands.

_“You want me to tell your sister that she can't break things? Ah, no, Amanda, I mean, naturally you are. Please, let's, lower that. I'm talking to Todd.”_

Todd laughed lightly. What had he dragged them into?

“Dirk, please. I’m sorry, for everything. But you have to find Vogel, and keep Amanda away. And, just, stay as far away from Adrien as possible. Can you do that?” Todd didn’t know what else to do. He couldn’t stand, he couldn’t leave, he couldn’t even handle two days kidnapped.

_“Yes, small issue there. See, I sort of have this hunch, and-”_

Dirk stopped talking. Even he could hear the footsteps coming from the hallway.

“I have to go. I’m so sorry. For everything. Just, please, stay safe.” Todd pushed him away, his shout of protest fading as Adrien reappeared in the doorway.

Adrien threw a bottle at Todd, who just barely caught it before it nearly shattered onto the ground. Rolling his eyes, Adrien tossed down a washcloth after him.

“I won't ask why you look like that. Clean up the blood off your face.” He leaned against the doorway, watching him closely. “The bottle's for your leg. Jennings says you're supposed to pour it on the area.”

“What is it? Who is Jennings?” Todd frowned down at the bottle and wondered if he could just pour it onto his pant leg. Probably not.

“A witch. Annoying one, too. Good with potions, though. That's what they call it. It'll let you walk again, if that's what you want.” He smiled. “You do want to walk, right? After I went to all the trouble to get it for you.”

Todd swallowed and nodded slowly.

“Sure. That’s fine.” He poured the bottle out onto his leg and was relatively contented with the loss of the pain. Maybe witches weren’t all terrible.

“I also told them to look out for another wolf, but sadly my hopes aren't very high. How _did_ you get so much blood on your face?” Adrien took a few steps forward into the small room, crouching back down in front of him.

“It was probably Dirk when we, did, whatever that thing was.” Todd started wiping away at his face and realized he had no idea where the blood was. He could probably guess, but best just to scrub all over.

Adrien sighed.

“Have you looked in a mirror since you arrived, Todd? You'd think you'd be more high maintenance than this.” Adrien pulled a phone out of his pocket, opening an app and pointing it at Todd. “Here. You probably don't look your best.”

That was an understatement. Todd had literally never seen his bags so pronounced, and there was indeed blood all over his face. What _had_ he done? He sighed trying not to look to closely and instead focused on the areas with blood. It didn’t take long, and once done he looked down at his hands.

“Thanks. I guess.”

“I figured I'd do something, seeing as you're being polite. Listening makes you not entirely useless. You might even get good at it.” Adrien followed his gaze, looking at the fading black and blue splotches on his hand. “Still hurts, doesn't it?”

“A little, it’s fine. I can, handle it.” Todd mumbled, trying to make a fist and wincing. Adrien laughed.

“I doubt you can handle much. It's just not in your nature. A shame, really. At least now you'll remember what happens when you lie. It's not fun, I'll assume.” Adrien was grinning at him.

“I will not tell lies.” Todd mumbled, looking at the back of his hand at the dark bruises. “Yeah, it’ll be a nice reminder for the next hour or so. Is it, how much longer?”

“Maybe an hour. Which is why I haven't left yet. What would you like to do?”

Todd wondered if dying early was an option. But probably not.

“Well, you're chatty. Is something wrong?” Adrien frowned.

“No, I just, an hour is a long time.” Todd grumbled. Maybe if he asked nicely they could bump up the time. That would give the others a chance to find Vogel, and get far from here.

“Now, don't tell me you want to let them kill you. That's just _boring._ ” Adrien's voice had a touch of venom in the last few words, and when Todd flinched, he sighed. “Really?”

“I’m sorry. I just, I don’t know. What, what do you want to do?” Todd wasn’t sure if he was going to regret that line of questioning. Probably.

“Nothing you'd like to do, which isn't technically a problem for me.” Adrien grinned at him. “I could give you another panic attack, or describe in detail how the universe will shatter at my feet, or something that will probably leave you… let's go with more broken than you already are. Fun options.”

“Right. Um, thanks, I mean, not really but, no thanks. To, any of those really. Sorry I asked.” Todd glanced down.

Adrien's shoulders were shaking with silent laughter.

“See what I mean? Already with that little spark of panic. But I'll ask again, do you want me to let you choose what we do?”

Todd thought for a moment. If he chose, he could choose something benign and not leave this plane of existence anymore broken than he already was. On the other hand, he literally didn’t want to do anything. Maybe he would ask if dying early was an option? It was just a spell, did those have to be done at certain times? Amanda would know.

“I just want, something.” Todd cursed himself, that was terribly specific. “Can we just, I, don't know. Do we, is there, music?”

“Music?”

“Music, I- I like to, listen to it. When I'm stressed. Or, sing it or whatever.” Todd bit his tongue again. Adrien frowned, tilting his head.

“That’s what you want?” He asked, raising an eyebrow. Todd's shoulders shook, painfully, with a suppressed, bitter laugh.

“At least let me listen to music before you decide to kill me.” Todd groaned internally.

He was far too rude a person, wasn't he? Maybe this was his fault.

Yes, that was definitely it.

Adrien was still frowning but turned towards the door. He covered the distance and held it open.

“After you.” he gestured out into the hall.

Walking past Adrien and into the hallway was one of the more uncomfortable experiences of the day so far. Being so close to him made Todd want to shake, but he didn't, because who knows what Adrien would do? Todd suppressed a sigh as he stared down the long, seemingly endless hallway. What a typical, awful weekend he was having.

Adrien didn’t speak as they wound through the halls. He threw Todd an occasional glance but nothing else. He stopped in front of a set of double doors and pushed them open. Inside was a couch, with a television and a decent looking sound system. He waved his hand through the door and waited.

It was a nice change from his white cell.

Todd glanced around the room, his face feeling heavy.

“This is, something.” Todd took a breath, exhaling sharply.

“It’s what happens when you hire millenials. There’s a remote on the couch, the TV is hooked up to Apple or something. You should be able to find music there. I’ll be back in a little while.” He turned to leave.

Right. This was fine. This was okay. Adrien was leaving, which meant that, maybe, Todd could stop worrying about obeying or disobeying for a little bit. That sounded nice, for a change.

Adrien stopped at the door and glanced back.

“Do I need to tell you to stay put, or will you stay by yourself?” He asked, his tone had changed. Something seemed, different. Todd didn't bother to try and figure it out; again, it didn't matter. Not to him.

“I'm, just going to stay here. Thanks.”

Adrien nodded, taking a moment to stare before turning and closing the door.

It took Todd a second to actually move, listening to see if he would come back. After a few minutes of silence, Todd breathed a sigh of relief. He seemed to be gone. Taking the remote, but not yet sitting, it didn't take him long to find a random playlist. It wasn't his usual music, rock for the most part, but instead it was an odd, upbeat group that Dirk liked to listen to. The familiar music flooded Todd's ears, and he felt his tension ease.

Everything was okay.

He sank into the couch, searching somewhere far away for Dirk. Dirk seemed to be searching too, but not in the same way that Todd was. He was looking for something physical. Closing his eyes, he could hear the familiar sound of the Rowdies’ van. He could even pretend he was in there as well, with the rest of them.

Yes, he could pretend. But that didn't stop his reality from existing.

Todd opened his eyes to stare at the ceiling. Today was simply and plainly different from yesterday, and it wasn't just the fact that he was going to die. Everywhere he looked, he couldn't get that damned room out of his mind. His shoulder started aching every time he thought about Adrien kicking him, pushing him, biting him, or any of the other things that happened in that room.

He should have suspected it all. Norse Gods were already unbelievably creepy to begin with. Adrien though, he took the cake. He was… Well, he made Todd's stomach turn, and that was enough for him as it was.

The songs switched and continued through the playlist, one after the other, ticking away the minutes. Todd wondered if he should try to enjoy this more but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. It wasn't worth anything.

When the door finally opened again he sighed.

“Hey, I guess.”

“Hey is fine. Did you, enjoy the music?” Adrien still sounded off, distant. Todd wasn't sure if it was because he actually sounded that way, or because he had probably started to disassociate.

Either way.

“It was, something. It's music. I don't, know what I'm supposed to say about it. Thanks, I guess.” Todd's voice, on the other hand, was hollow. Adrien sighed.

“Music is, something indeed. Are you ready to go?”

“No.”

Todd got to his feet anyway. He turned to face Adrien, who was frowning, not at Todd, but at the television behind him.

“Would you like more time?” He asked. Todd bit his lip, inexplicable anger boiling up in his stomach. In his attempt to calm himself, he forgot to respond in time, and Adrien glanced at him.

“I take it now is as good a time as any. Turn–” He sighed. “Please don’t forget to turn off the TV.” He turned and walked towards the door.

Todd frowned after him, but switched it off anyway before he went to follow him. Was it a good idea to speak right now? It was debatable. He suspected that Dirk had become angry somewhere, and that it was rubbing off on him. Either way, the result was less than ideal. An angry Todd meant a rude Todd, and a rude Todd only led to bad things.

So, he kept his mouth shut.

“I will let Dirk know that I offer condolences when I see him. Losing a bond is, well, heartbreaking really.” Adrien said. His tone remained even as they walked through the halls. Todd only nodded.

Yeah, it was, and Todd would love it if Adrien could leave it well enough alone.

“Have you ever heard of Bragi, Todd?” Adrien asked, continuing to stare ahead.

Todd took a deep, steadying breath.

“No.” He spoke through his teeth, hopefully not sounding too crude. He took another breath. He had control of himself. He was fine.

“It’s where the word brag comes from. To boast. He was, something else. He was a lot like you.” Adrien said, turning down a hall. Todd narrowed his eyes, chancing again a moment to speak.

“Right. And, you're telling me because…” Todd gritted his teeth. Why couldn't Dirk calm down?

“Because I haven’t talked about it for, four thousand years. Figured dead men tell no tales right?” Adrien glanced down briefly as they walked.

Todd wanted to tell him that he was doing good at the whole sympathetic villain dynamic so far, but decided against it. Out of all his ideas today, that one was the worst one.

“Yeah. Guess not.”

“He was Odin’s son. Part of the Aesir. We shouldn’t have met. It was, chance, or fate, or something. He was singing. Practicing a song for his _dear_ Idunn. But that didn’t stop my stupid heart. He died. It was a long time ago. Dirk will, never heal. I’m sorry for that.”

“Great. Neither will I.” Todd stared at the floor. “So it's, all good, man.”

“I don’t know, what will happen to your soul. But if you happen upon Bragi,” Todd glanced up, expecting something sweet, or enduring, or humanizing. “Tell him, I wish I’d ripped Idunn’s throat out when I had the chance.”

“You know what? I don't think I'd have a problem with yelling at a God.”

Adrien glanced down, a smirk appearing on his face.

“I’m sure you scream just fine.” Adrien laughed. Todd frowned.

“Yeah. Too bad you'll never know. Ask my first boyfriend maybe.”

Adrien spun, his hand latching tightly to Todd’s neck as he pinned him to the wall.

“Did you scream his name? Worship at his altar? Did you find at least one god to pray to in your time on Earth?” Adrien had leaned in close, lifting Todd off the ground, his nose inches from Todd’s cheek. Todd grabbed aimlessly at his hands, trying to loosen them.

“Get, the fuck, off.” Todd couldn't breathe in, and the world quickly started to spin.

“Oh, I’m sure he did. But maybe you never found anyone to praise. Your generation believes so fleetingly, and never all at once. You don’t know how to love, how to believe, how to have faith in anything. Not anymore.” Adrien released Todd. Taking a step back as he crumpled to the ground, clutching at his own throat. A cough tried to force it's way up, but Todd only breathed heavier.

“Adrien. What the, hell. Man.” Todd clenched his eyes tightly shut as another cough tried to force its way up.

“You’re going somewhere no one can follow. And if you're lucky, one of the ferrymen will take pity on your worthless soul, guide you to the hereafter. If you make it that far. And Dirk, well, he’ll be here. And once I’m done with the world, I’ll make him worship me.”

“You asshole. You _fucking_ asshole.” Todd glanced up at him his whole body twitching with fury. “I swear! Try and touch him I swear to the gods I will kick your ass!”

“Oh, you swear? To the gods? What is a man without belief to a god? The answer is not worth their time.” Adrien grabbed hold of Todd’s hair and pulled him up. Todd kicked backwards, wrenching himself out of Adrien's grasp and slamming into the wall. It took him a second to realize that he had kicked against Adrien's shins, and he only realized that because Adrien started to laugh.

“You, are so not touching Dirk.” A growl rose from Todd’s throat, still massaging his neck.

“You still don’t get it. I do, whatever, I want. And not you, not Dirk, not the gods, not even the universe, can stop me. So, would you like to try your hand, one last time, at taking me on? I’ll even let you get the first punch in.” Adrien was smiling.

It registered with Todd that sometime during Adrien's speech, he'd started to tremble with all of his fury. Another growl escaped his lips as he glared at Adrien, his hands twitching and clenching.

He was _not_ touching Dirk.

“Look at the big, bad wolf. Come out to play. Get up.” Adrien took a step back, a smile still plastered to his face.

“Make me, you, absolute bastard.”

Dirk would love that he'd picked up on his insults. Or rather, he would have, if Todd was going to live through this. Todd was breathing too heavily, his vision starting to twist and turn as the anger flooded his veins.

“Happy to.” Adrien reached forward and grabbed Todd’s hair, pulling him up and swapping his other hand for a grip on his throat. He lifted Todd off the ground, holding him over his head and laughing.

An angry, guttural cry came from Todd. The trembling in his body lessened a bit, but it only made everything that much sharper.

“Careful Todd. You wouldn't want to shift. You probably don’t remember much about our first encounter, but, you will not win. I promise you that. And just think how much pain I’ll inflict before you finally die. You thought the first bite was bad? You ain’t seen nothing yet.”

The wall shook as Todd kicked against it, digging his nails into Adrien's arms. He blinked; it was difficult to see clearly.

Why couldn't he see again? All he could remember was that he was angry.

Angry at Adrien. Why?

A lower, quieter growl came from Todd's lips.

“Terrifying. Truly, My turn.” Adrien threw Todd against the wall. Waiting before he hit the floor before taking a step forward.

The hall began to vibrate. Todd wasn’t sure if it was the concussion he most likely had or something else, but his ears began to ring. He blinked, the anger draining from his vision. Why was he on the ground?

Why did Adrien look absolutely terrifying?

“What the-”

Adrien bared his teeth and the sound intensified, his eyes had changed from their normal dark color to a deep, glowing red, and the sound that was filling the hall seemed to be coming from him. Todd's hands clamped over his ears as he curled on the ground to get away from the noise. To get away from Adrien.

The ringing intensified until Todd could feel his teeth vibrating in his skull.

“Stop! Please–” He couldn’t even hear his own voice as he screamed. The sound began to fade, and as his hearing returned he could hear Adrien laughing, kneeling down next to him.

Todd's hands were wet with blood.

“That was fun. I haven’t done that for a while. How’s that hearing of yours?” He shouted the last bit, flicking Todd in the ear. A cry escaped him as he tensed up.

“What? Adrien, what…” Todd trailed off, grabbing his head. Everything was too bright.

“Oh, the growl? Yeah, it’s this thing I can do, it’s super fun. It causes high frequency vibrations to attack your ears and the processing center of your brain. Essentially, it makes everyone who hears it, bow down, to me. Tell me, how does subjugation feel?”

“Shitty.” Todd grimaced. “Shit. Adrien. God.” He tried to take a breath.

“Now you’re getting it. Stand. Up.” Adrien stood, taking a step back. Todd rocked on his feet as he stood, gasping as he tried to keep his swaying to a minimum. It wasn't working very well.

Nothing seemed to be working well at all for him.

“Follow–” A beeping sound filled the hall. Adrien rolled his eyes and reached into his pocket. He pulled out his phone and looked down at the screen. “Huh. Interesting.”

Todd moaned as the sound filled his ears. It was too loud, and there was still blood coming off of him.

Adrien pocketed his phone, an odd smile stretching across his face.

“Follow me. I have a surprise.” Adrien turned and continued down the hall. Todd swayed, his legs on autopilot as he tried to keep up.

A surprise.

What kind of terrible, awful thing could be surprising at this point?

Adrien led them through the large room and back the way they had come the day before, making it almost back to the main entrance before Adrien turned down a new hall towards a door.

“After you.” He was still smiling. Todd nearly fell into the room walking in, his footwork unsteady.

He blinked.

The room was filled with a group of men and women, and much to Todd’s annoyance, most of them were millennials. They turned and watched as he collapsed just inside the door. He heard Adrien groan and was suddenly being lifted, the back of his shirt bunched tightly in Adrien’s grip.

Todd gasped as he was thrown to the ground next to the circle, the coven backing up all around him, save for a space to let someone walk through. Todd vaguely registered Adrien suddenly looking above him, and breathing heavily, he managed to stare up at him. Adrien smiled, looking more pleased than Todd had ever seen him.

A second, familiar smell hit his nose, but his body was aching too badly to really investigate it. Adrien clapped his hands together.

“I have good news Todd. We found another wolf. You get to live. Isn’t that great?”

Todd groaned, dropping his head back on the ground and cringing as he hit his ear. It was hard to hear Adrien; everything was muffled by a loud ringing that he was sure was a result of… whatever it was that Adrien had done. Adrien was lying. He wasn't going to let him live. He _couldn't_ let him live. He'd promised.

“He certainly looks like he’ll do.” Adrien said, walking around Todd and speaking to someone behind him. Todd tried to shake his head, but failed.

“No Adrien.” He spoke slowly, barely able to hear his own voice all that well. “Let me, let, mm…”

Couldn't Adrien just let him leave?

“Where’d you find him, exactly?” Adrien wasn’t listening.

“Media room, smashing up the TV.” Someone else responded, probably one of the witches. “He was, really hard to bring down. He can do, something. Almost killed Jenkins.”

“Mmm. Adrien.” Todd called again, his voice clearer in his ears as it got louder. He could barely listen to whoever was talking, but he knew he wanted them to stop. He wanted a lot of things to stop, the pain in his head included. “Adrien.”

“Just a moment.” There was the tapping as Adrien walked back over. “You know it’s rude to interrupt people, correct? Or did you fail basic human decency as a child?” He loomed over Todd. Todd closed his eyes.

“Let me.”

“Let you what, Todd? You must be specific.” Adrien laughed lightly, crouching down next to him. Todd cringed away, but then stopped.

It didn't matter.

“Let me do it.” Adrien couldn't take this away from him.

“Can’t do that I’m afraid. They’ve already got that little anarchist pup ready to go. It doesn’t make sense to switch out now. Now does it?” Adrien stood, disappearing behind Todd again.

The name Adrien had used rang a bell, but the ringing was making it hard to think. He moaned. Adrien couldn't do this.

“No.” He couldn't hear his own voice.

“No?” Adrien’s voice sounded behind him. “Are you arguing with me now, Todd?”

“Mm no. Let me. Let…” Todd trailed off, realizing he was crying.

Just let him have this.

“That sounds like arguing. Stand up.” Adrien growled, reappearing near his head. Todd whimpered quietly as he got, rather unsteadily, to his feet. It was too difficult to think.

“You said your pack were those loud, crazy homeless people right?” Adrien asked, smiling down. Todd, breathless, nodded.

He was going to fall.

“Well then, at least you get to say goodbye in person.” Adrien said as he leaned down next to Todd’s ear. He grabbed hold of his shoulders and spun him towards the group.

Todd stumbled back into Adrien, his knees nearly giving out.

“Vogel?”

Vogel was standing in the middle of the circle, pulling against his own feet that seemed to be stuck to the floor. He looked up at his name, and smiled.

“Pup! Hey! You're alive!” Vogel looked at the blood on Todd's… Well, everything, and frowned. “What happened, pup?!”

Todd shook his head, still holding onto Adrien so he didn't fall. Vogel couldn't be here. They couldn't have them.

He'd _warned_ Martin.

“Pup. That’s adorable. Go say goodbye, Pup. It’s only polite.” Adrien laughed, pushing Todd forward slowly. A sob came out of Todd.

“Adrien. Don’t. Wait.” His voice was shaking, watching the way Vogel couldn't seem to move. He couldn't do this, not to Vogel.

Shit.

“Would you rather not say goodbye? We can always start a little early. Right Jennings? Wait, where– it doesn’t matter. Jenkins. Do we have everything we need?” One of the coven members nodded his head, glancing quickly between Adrien and Vogel.

“Adrien!” Todd's voice was louder than anticipated, and it made his head hurt. Vogel was looking at him, confused, not realizing the reality of the situation. Todd wasn't sure what he was shaking with, but it was a very intense mix of emotions.

He couldn't stay. Not here. Not with Adrien. Vogel couldn't take his place.

Adrien’s hand clamped down on his shoulder and pulled him backwards against his chest. Todd gasped at the proximity.

This was wrong.

“Adrien, stop, you can't-”

“Say goodbye. Before I change my mind about playing nice.” Adrien hissed into his ear, squeezing down onto his shoulder tighter. Todd was crying, trying to struggle out of Adrien's grip.

“Please. Please.” Not Vogel. It couldn't be Vogel. Vogel was starting to realize that something was very wrong, and reached out to claw at one of the coven members, nearly reaching them.

“He’s got spirit. More than you, that’s for sure. Too bad I didn’t bite him. He seems far less broken.” Adrien whispered, his lips brushing against Todd’s ear. Todd reacted violently to the touch, shuddering and kicking out of his grasp, nearly falling into a coven member. Vogel cheered for him.

“Yeah man! Go Pup!”

“Indeed. Go, Pup. Over there. Time’s up. Jenkins, get started.” Adrien turned and walked over to the other side of the room and watched the others. Todd yelled out, feeling his body go to where Adrien had pointed.

“Vogel! Wait! Adrien!” If Todd didn't take Vogel's place, he'd be left alone with Adrien again. He couldn't. He couldn't do that.

“Silence, Pup.” Adrien said, smiling before turning back to Vogel. “Your sacrifice is appreciated.”

“Yo, you're all wacked up man!” Vogel screamed at him, watching the way Todd was getting increasingly more upset. “I'll- I'll do the thing, man!”

“No, Vogel-” Todd coughed as a burning sensation appeared in his throat.

“Oh yes. The universe thing. Fortunately for me, it wouldn’t work. So, drain energy all you want. It won’t matter in a moment. Jenkins?” Adrien glared over at the coven members who seemed to be afraid to get too close to the circle. Jenkins looked over and nodded, gesturing for the others to get into position.

Vogel yelled, directing his gaze to the witch named Jenkins.

“Vogel don't!” The burning in Todd's throat was just awful, and as he yelled for Vogel, it only got worse. Vogel frowned, turning to him.

“Why not?!”

He just shook his head.

He couldn't. He couldn't.

This was his fault.

Low muttering sounded through the room as the spell began. Adrien smiled and glanced over at Todd, watching as he struggled to stay standing. Todd gasped, glaring at him, unsure what to do to fix this.

“You _fucker_. Why can't you let me _die_!?” Todd yelled at him through the burning, tears clouding his vision. This wasn't happening. It couldn't be. “You promised!”

It couldn't be happening.

“I changed my mind. I think I’ll keep you around.” Adrien smiled, his canines visible, and an awful glint in his eye. Todd's legs finally gave out, and he fell, barely able to stay on his knees. This wasn't fine. This was awful.

And he was still crying.

“Please just let me die.”

“Todd! Pup! Help! It hurts man! Please!” Vogel had started crying out, shouting over the coven. Todd's shoulders shook with something that wasn't really a cry, but it wasn't good either.

“Adrien!”

“Silence. Stay there. I’ll deal with you later.” Adrien glanced back up at Vogel, a terrifying smile creeping across his face.

“You can't. You can't. Please.” Todd couldn't contain his shaking. “I'll listen, Adrien. Please!”

Not Vogel.

“Todd! Todd! Please!” Vogel was sobbing, dark lines etching across his skin.

“Adrien I swear to-” Todd choked as the burning sensation cut off his air supply.

“Or I could deal with you now.” Adrien sighed glaring over at Todd. It wasn’t a long distance that he would have to cover. Todd shook his head, sobbing and still gasping for air.

“Adrien…” Todd nearly fell the rest of the way to the ground, the trembling mixing with the burning to form something awful.

“Todd! Please! Help!” Vogel was gasping, tears staining his cheeks as he shook. Adrien had turned away from what the coven was doing and was slowly stalking towards Todd, a sharp smile on his face.

Todd finally bucked forward, falling to the ground. He could barely hear Vogel over his damaged ears, and if anything, the sound was making it worse.

Vogel.

_“Todd. Hang on.”_

The voice didn’t come from the room. Todd laughed bitterly at it; didn't it know that there wasn't any hope to fix this? There was nothing. Not even Adrien. It didn't matter. He couldn't stop himself from laughing once he started, and it occurred to him that he might look slightly manic.

Adrien had stopped walking and was frowning down at him

“What is wrong with you?” He asked. Todd gasped, trying to stop. It was harder than it should have been. Nothing mattered, so why should any of this?

“Fuck you, Adrien.” He glanced at Vogel. “Sorry man.”

This was fine.

Everything was fine.

“Pup! Dirk! Amanda! Someone! Please!” Vogel screamed, an odd pressure had started to build in the room. Wisps of blue were sparking off of Vogel as he cried. Adrien turned at the mention of the new names.

“Amanda. She sounds fun. I can’t wait to meet her.”

Todd screamed.

“Fuck you, Adrien!” He laughed again. “And fuck your goddamn Bragi too!” Todd pushed himself off the ground and glared over at Adrien who had turned back to him.

This wasn’t going to happen. Todd wasn’t going to let it happen. He reached out, looking for something to help him move forward. That’s where he found Dirk. He could feel Dirk running, somewhere, hope bubbling in his chest, helping to drive out Todd’s panic.

Dirk was running. So could he.

Todd took a step forward and felt pain race up his leg, the side effect of disobeying Adrien. Vogel’s cries intensified as he saw Todd moving forward.

“Todd! Please! Help me! Todd!” Todd took another step and then another and then he was running. Adrien’s voice bouncing off the walls and grating against his skull.

“Stop! I said stop!” The pain from Adrien’s ignored command raced through Todd’s legs but that didn’t matter. He shoved through the circle and grabbed tightly to Vogel, feeling the effects of the binding spell pushing against him. He had to get Vogel out of the circle.

Todd shoved Vogel as hard as he could, nearly falling after him. Vogel tumbled backwards and made it just past the edge as the men around him were completing their spell.

Todd felt a sharp burning sensation running along his skin and he wasn’t sure if it was because he had defied Adrien or the spell at work but he didn’t have time to think. An intense spark of joy pushed away all his other emotions and he glanced up towards the door.

And for a moment, the universe slowed, extending the distance between the heartbeats.

Dirk was there. He was panting and bright red, but he was smiling. Todd wanted to shout to him, to run to him and wrap him in a hug and never let him go, and then he remembered where he was, what was about to happen. And all he could feel was sorry.

Dirk was there. Dirk was going to watch him die.

Todd let out what was to be his last breath as he tried to push an apology to Dirk. He wasn’t able to form the thought before lightning tore through his body and Todd Brotzman was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry? Maybe. Maybe not. Sorry for Todd, at least. -Sam  
> *Maniacal laughter which quickly devolves into ugly crying* -Sarah


	3. Saying Everything is Fine Doesn't Make it Better

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Only two more chapters to go! We hope you like them!

**How Well Can Martin Really Drive?**

“Todd! Wait! Shit.” Dirk glared at the ceiling as Todd faded away again. This was possibly the worst thing that had happened to him, second only to every time he had spent with Priest. He glanced over at Martin.

“If at all possible, please drive faster.” Dirk said, trying to hold back the cry building in his throat. They weren’t far, but that didn’t help calm Dirk. Todd was in danger, Todd was going to die. That couldn’t happen. He could hear Friedverse mumbling in the back and felt a new surge of annoyance. The universe wasn’t taking Todd away from him.

“Dude, we're pushing like, eighty.” Amanda frowned, worry etched on her face as she glanced through the mass of bodies in the van to glance at the dials up front. “Martin?”

“‘M tryin’. Pup’ll…” Martin trailed off. He seemed uncertain. “We'll find 'im.”

“I’m sure we will. I just, wish we could go faster.” Dirk sighed glancing over at Amanda. He was sure that she understood his panic, Todd was her brother after all. Sure they didn’t always get along, but, family was family. She bounced her leg, impatient.

“We'll find him. We like, have to. The North isn't that big.” She nodded, more to herself, before a familiar nagging closes sounded from behind them.

“Todd did say he was in a pocket dimension.” Friedverse frowned, turning over an empty beer can in their hands that had been discarded ages ago. They looked relatively calm. “Technically speaking, we could be looking at any size possible. Dude, not helping. I'm just telling them the truth. Statistically speaking-”

“Dude!” Amanda glared at him, gripping her bat with a threatening twist of the wrist. Friedverse quieted right away.

“I hate to say it, but I agree with Hugo. That is, most certainly, not helping. Amanda, how much farther?” Dirk asked, continuing to glaring at Friedverse as they fidgeted uncomfortably in their seat.

“Like twenty, at a normal speed. We're going pretty fast though.” Amanda glanced again at the front of the van. Gripps was sitting up front with him, and Cross had spent much of the time talking in a low voice to Amanda and Dirk.

“Alright. We should come up with a plan. That’s what they do in those awful movies Todd watches. They make a plan, and then they follow through with the plan, or well, mostly all the way through. It usually goes off the rails at some point, but I’m sure that whatever plan we come up with will–”

“Brit.” Cross frowned, his hands in his pockets. “All this is gonna turn out.”

Amanda sighed.

“Dude, Cross is right. Okay, we like, always deal with gods. You have your holistic thing, right? Todd is like, technically a case.” Amanda was grasping at straws, and coming up with little to nothing. “Or do I have to like, employ you?”

“You know, I’ve never been entirely clear on the precise nature of how this, whatever it is, works. Why don’t we ask?” They all glanced up at Friedverse who had gone back to mumbling to themselves. After a second, Amanda used her bat to poke they.

“Ah!” They jumped, and after a moment rolled his eyes. “What!? Come on, let's chill. She interrupted!”

“You interrupt on a daily basis. You can handle being bothered for a moment.” Dirk glared. “Since you are here though, mind shedding some light on the whole interconnected, dragging me around, nonsense?”

Friedverse sighed.

“Are we doing this now?” They looked vaguely annoyed, they features clearing from time to time as Hugo took over to scowl at them. “We're all rather busy at the moment.”

“In case you haven’t noticed, we’re stuck in a van, going as fast as we can towards something terrible. So unless you want to get us there faster, I see no better time to ask.” Dirk raised an eyebrow, watching as they shuffled backward slightly. They sighed.

“There's a plan. There's always been a very clear plan, but it rarely works out how it's expected to. Priest being an example.” Martin tensed. “Your job is to bring people to where they need to be, so that the plans can go forward. Amanda is a part of it. So is Bart, and The Rowdy Three, and Todd, and the shapeshifter. Unfortunately, I can't access it while possessing Friedkin. The plans can't be contained in a human vessel.” He scrunched up his eyes at something they couldn't see. “Not now, Hugo.”

“A very clear plan? Are you mental? Nothing I ever have happen to me is clear. Ever. Unless you mean clearly dangerous. In which case, congratulations on that.” Dirk laughed, a hint of mania slipping into his voice. Friedverse frowned.

“That's just crossfire. It was never my intention to put you in danger. It's dangerous to help follow the path.” He huffed, leaning against the back of the van. “I never said that it goes according to the plan. I just said that there is one.”

“So you basically suck at your job?” Amanda had a glint in her eye as Friedverse slowly nodded.

“Seeing it from your perspective, I suppose I'm not as great at it as I thought.”

“And the understatement of the century goes to the universe.” Dirk deadpanned, glancing towards the front of the van. Martin looked through the mirror into he back, something clouding his face.

“You all good, Brit? Ain't acting right. Like you left yourself at the office.” He was staring at Dirk, his eyes dark from the thoughts of Vogel getting caught in the crossfire. “Everything's good?” Gripps turned back to look at him.

Dirk wasn't listening.

“At least tell me this. In this grand plan of yours, do we win? Do we make it to the end and get to finally relax? Or do we just get to be more pawns to be sacrificed in your cosmic game? Because if I don’t get to take a long vacation by the time this is all over, I will find you, I don’t care how many dimensions I have to cross, I will find you, and show you what it really means to be human.” Dirk glared at Friedverse, the annoyance in his chest feeling not so much like his own. Friedverse groaned.

“I told you. I can’t access it in this body. It would turn Hugo’s brain into liquid in an instant. Uh, can we maybe, not do that? We aren't.” They shook their head, crossing their arms.

“Well, perhaps when you leave you can remember to be just a little more _clear._ ” Dirk sighed leaning his head back. Somewhere he thought he could hear music playing softly. Taking a deep breath he looked over at Amanda. “So, a plan.”

“A plan.” She nodded, taking a deep breath. “Right. We just got to… is saying split up too on the nose?”

“Hm?” Cross raised his eyebrow, leaning in to listen. She sighed, an angry sound coming from her.

“Like, if it's big, we can't cover enough ground on time. The boys can like, go one way, and I can take the dumbass.” Amanda gestured to Friedverse, who opened his mouth to protest before being shot down. “And Dirk can do his, whatever. That should, do something?”

“We ain't leavin’ you, Drummer.” Martin spoke up from the front seat, and Amanda groaned.

“I can take care of some witches. If Dirk can, and I know he's capable, so can I.” Amanda glared at Dirk, who was flitting his gaze back and forth between everyone.

“Thank you for the vote of confidence. I’m sure we’ll all be able to manage. While I dislike the idea of splitting up, it does seem most effective.” He hadn’t felt any negative hunches towards the idea, so it must be good.

“It'll be fine.” Amanda seemed to be convincing herself, more than anyone else. “I'll have the universe. You have… your thing. The boys will have each other. We'll be fine. Like, totally.” She bit her lip. “Yeah?”

“All of it's good!” Gripps yelled encouragement from his seat. “Drummer though, you're the leader!”

“Sure you ain't comin’ with?” Martin glanced back, and Amanda nodded.

“Yeah. I'll be cool. We'll all be. Dirk can find Todd, we can find Bart and Ethan, and you guys can find Vogel. Probably. Maybe? Ah, shit.” Amanda closed her eyes. “I have no clue what's going on.”

“I know the feeling well.” Dirk laughed lightly. “But that’s usually when things start to make sense.”

“That's even _more_ alarming.”

“Typically yes. But as long as we avoid dead bodies, we’ll be fine.” Dirk threw a glance over at Friedverse and sighed. “Or at the very least we’ll be, something.”

“And you!” Amanda picked her bat back up to poke Friedverse with it once more. “If you ditch me, I am so the next next in line to hit you.”

“Noted. Jeez, you're like, kinda scary. I suppose some people find her as such, Hugo. She can be intimidating.” Friedverse started muttering to himself again, zoning out. Amanda sighed.

“Right. So I'm screwed.”

“If you want I can take the literal insane person.” Dirk said, smiling over at her. She laughed quietly, shaking her head.

“Nah man. If I lose him, that's on him. I'll punch his lights out later.” She glanced up. “Martin!”

“Soon, Drummer.”

Dirk sighed closing his eyes. He was fairly certain he could hear music but still wasn’t sure if it was real or not. Soon. They would be there soon.

They were driving for another five minutes, all of them filled with constant muttering from Friedverse. The Universe seemed to be in an argument with Hugo, and neither seemed happy about it. Finally, Amanda shared a look with Cross before snapping.

“Dude!” Friedverse jumped nearly a foot in the air, earning a chorus of laughter from Gripps, Cross and Farah, and even Dirk. He felt calm, almost. “Either share or shut up!”

“I agree.” Farah looked fairly tired, having been staring at nothing for most of the car ride. Beast was lying up against her, fast asleep. “You look like you're going insane.”

“I'm not insane. I'm simply- dude, no! He's like, right there! That doesn't matter, they have a request. You are so getting us killed! We will be fine, Hugo.” Friedverse was yelling at themself, their voice bouncing off the walls of the van.

“Oh my god! Just, there must be a quieter way for you to argue with yourself!” Dirk shouted, startling even himself.

“We're fine. We're simply discussing how well Todd will be able to- come _on_ man! Let me finish.” Friedverse groaned. “How well Todd will be able to hold out. Fenrir is the god of chaos, and after what we saw of him, I doubt he even has the strength to stay strong at the this moment.”

Dirk glared at them, the silence in the van was palpable. He turned slowly to Amanda.

“Give me the bat.” He held out his hand, still glaring at Friedverse. Amanda shared a look with Farah before handing her bat backwards to Cross.

“Tempting. But, you seem, kind of out of it. So-”

“Oh I am perfectly ‘with it’, Amanda.” Dirk said, his tone was far to even. The anger in his chest was building, mixing with Todd’s. What was happening now?

“For your information, all knowing, universe. Todd, is more than capable of holding his own. We’ve faced worse things than this. He will be fine.” He sounded convincing, mostly.

“What are none of you understanding about 'God of Chaos’? He breaks people. That's his thing. He's like, the least calm out of his entire family.” Friedverse had changed from looking annoyed to looking slightly out off. Dirk was never, ever angry.

“I don’t care, if he’s the craziest one or not. Todd will be fine. I know he will be.” A pain blossomed in Dirk’s neck but he was too focused to notice. “You’ve been here all of a day, you don’t get to cast judgement on things you yourself have admitted to not fully understanding.”

“I'm just saying-” Friedverse was cut off as the van came to a screeching halt, waking up Beast with a screech. Martin banged on the roof.

“Here!”

The doors were flung open as Gripps and Cross fled into the woods, Martin twirling an intimidating looking sledgehammer. Amanda let Farah, Beast, and Friedverse out of the van before turning to Dirk, who had started to frown.

“Dude. Come on.” She held out her hand, waiting. They were going to find everyone, they had to.

“Something’s happened.” He mumbled. Dirk could hear a loud ringing in his ears as his head pounded, the rage he had felt a moment ago gone and replaced with panic.Amanda took a breath.

“Well, then let's go kick whoever's asses we need to to fix it.” Nearby howling could be heard now, and from the open doors, the distinct eyes of two wolves could be seen bounding through into the opening. Dirk nodded, grabbing Amanda’s hand and jumping out of the van.

The small site had several buildings to choose from, all different levels of terrifying. Dirk frowned as he looked around. Which one?

Moving forward he could hear the others getting ready behind him. The largest of the buildings, the furthest back from the spot they had stopped, pulled him forward. That one. It had to be.

“This way.” He said to no one in particular as he moved forward. Martin banged twice on the ground to get the attention of the others.

“Follow the Brit!” A chorus of howls, yells, and a very worried Friedverse was heard, along with the cocking of a gun. Dirk took a breath. The was going to work.

They made it to a door that somehow looked older than the building. Dirk was sure this was the right place. He pulled on the handle, but the door would budge. He tried again and frowned. Martin could probably open it.

“Universe.” He said. That wasn’t what he had meant to say but sighed, stepping aside. Friedverse looked up, his eyes wide.

“Did someone call me?”

“No, it’s my new curse word. Of course I called you. The door is stuck. Mind giving it a go?” Dirk asked, gesturing to the handle. Friedverse sighed, throwing his head back.

“You can't just break it?” He paused. “No, that wouldn't work. It's improbable. You know, we could just like, zap it. We aren't superheroes, Hugo. Please just leave this to me. The blocking is weakened by something, so maybe.” They shook out their hands, taking a deep breath.

“Dude.” Amanda whispered in Dirk's ear, pulling him back. “Get out of the way.”

“Oh right!” Dirk stumbled backwards as Friedverse moved towards the door. He placed his hand on it, and for a moment, the air surrounding them all seemed to be pulled in, absconding them.

A loud crash rang in their eardrums, and suddenly they were looking into a large white hall. Friedverse looked like they were about to pass out.

“Well, that certainly worked. I assume we’ve reached the correct pocket dimension.” Dirk said, peeking down the hall as Friedverse swayed slightly. He turned back and frowned. “Are you alright?”

“Dude.” It was definitely Hugo speaking. “I think like, the universe is like, totally passed out.” He stumbled back a few steps, frowning. Where was The Universe?

“Okay, well that’s, very not good. You try to get them back, and we’ll, split up. Everybody ready?” Splitting up sounded like a bad plan, but Dirk wasn’t feeling any hunches at the moment. Though that could have something to do with the universe short circuiting. He frowned slightly, but shook his head, looking at the others. Hugo, was definitely going to follow the universe if he wasn’t careful.

“Boys!” Amanda called out loudly, pointing her bat at them. “Follow me, okay?! Martin can lead! Farah, kick some ass. You're awesome at that. And Dirk!” She spun around to face him, a wicked smile forming on her face. “Punch that Adrien dude in the face for me.”

“Happily, Amanda.” Dirk stepped into the hall and glanced around. Forward seemed like the best option. He was sure of it. “Hang on, Todd.” He whispered as he raced forward, the others splitting off behind him. They could do this.

They were too close to fail now.

* * *

**We Gave You A Chance, Maybe You Just Hate Yourself**

“Bart! Bart!” Ethan whispered down the empty hallway as Bart marched forward, pulled along by their own determination. He groaned as they waved him off, pausing at the end of the hall to decide which way to turn.

They went left.

“Bart!” Ethan ran after them, clutching his chest as he ran. Bart was holding Cross’ crowbar tightly in their hand, scowling at the doors around them. They grunted, looking back at him.

“We’s gotta be here, Eth.”

“Bart, this is the wrong way!” He gestured violently back the way they had come, where all of the commotion could be heard. It wasn't like Bart to leave the scene of something as intense as that. “We're supposed to be looking for Todd!”

“Eh. Todd. He can wait.”

Bart turned on the spot, fixing their gaze on a door with a broken handle. A terrifying grin worked its way onto their face, and not for the first time today, Ethan's heart stopped for a moment. Bart pointed at the door.

“There.”

“What could be in there that's more important than, saving Todd?!”

“Somethin’.” Bart looked at the crowbar in their hands, contemplating it for a moment. With a sudden force, they shoved it into Ethan's hands, who squeaked as he stumbled back with it in his grip. He took a few unsteady breaths as he watched Bart back up.

“Think yous better move.”

Ethan obliged, backing up with a few big steps to get out of the line of fire. He wasn't stupid enough to disobey Bart. As he took the last few steps, Bart launched themselves at the door to tackle it. The door came down off of its old hinges easily, and the sound of the crash was mixed with a distinct yell from inside the room.

Ethan stepped forward slowly behind the already rising Bart, and met eyes with his old boss.

Ken.

Bart smiled, tilting their head as they waved, holding onto Ethan as they steadied themselves. Ken had frozen up.

“Hiya Ken.”

“How did you find me?” Ken rose from his chair and placed it between him and Bart. A large bank of computer screens stretched across the wall behind him. Most of it looked but gibberish, but Ethan was able to recognize a few familiar words, project names, and what looked like a map of Norway with some red ‘x’s.

Bart frowned, raising their eyebrows. Upon taking a step forward, Ken took a step back to match the length. Ethan didn't enter the room.

“Universe.” Bart seemed to be trying to think, their brows furrowed. “Also yous gots the Todd guy. We’s gotta get 'im.” Ethan nodded behind them.

“I see you’ve still got Ethan at your heel. How is that, Ethan?” Ken raised an eyebrow looking over Bart’s shoulder.

“Uh…” Ethan faltered as he looked around the room for an answer, meeting eyes with Bart as they turned to listen. “It's… it's not that bad. Once you get used to it. And Bart's like, my, friend?”

Judging by Bart's expression, Ethan had chosen the right answer. Even better, he hadn't particularly been lying. Bart was interesting company. They turned back to Ken.

“Careful. I was _Marzanna’s_ friend too. Look how that turned out.” Ken glared forward. Ethan sputtered as Bart's shoulders fell.

“That- that is. You can't just, you can't, do that? You can't do that.” Ethan's voice got sturdier as the seconds passed, the confidence that he had Bart on his side helping to raise him up. “You can't call them that, _Adams.”_

“What are they gonna do, kill me? I knew that the minute I saw them on the video feed. Figured I would get what I could done before you both got here.” Ken said, pushing the chair aside.

Bart stepped forward, but stopped dead as Ethan reached out to pull them back. He had never actually tried to stop Bart before, but it wasn't like they could do much besides kill him for it. Besides, he was doing this to defend Bart.

The past five months had led Ethan to learn a lot about the previous subjects, Bart most of all. They were sort of violent, and very indifferent to pain as long as it was someone else suffering, but Bart was more than some sort of death bringer. After Ethan had gotten sick, Bart had gone out to find something to help him. They didn't find anything, but did come back with a bloody golden tinsel crown. Bart seemed pleased with the help they'd found, and Ethan had accepted the gift.

Bart was, most of all, pretty lonely. There weren't many people who had decided to take a chance on Ethan in his life, at any rate, and it wasn't his fault that his first real friend was a Holistic Assassin. The universe does what it wants, he supposed.

He glared at Ken.

“Call them by their name before they kill you.”

“Make me, pretty boy.”

“You-” He pointed the crowbar at Ken, with no real intention to use it. “You can't, call them that! They're not the one who's tried to murder and torture people! I mean, Bart has, but Bart does it quick! And right! You send psychopaths after people! We let you- They let you go so that you could do better!”

“And I did do better. I found people who knew what they were doing. Screw the universe, this is where the real magic is. Pun intended. Besides, Marzanna was always going to kill me, no matter what I did. Weren’t you?” Ken glanced over away from Ethan to Bart, his glare deepening. Bart shifted on their feet, not meeting his gaze.

“Not if yous had not seen me.”

“Well, I’m not the one who follows the universe around. So terribly sorry you found me.” Bart's frown deepened.

“Yous, not supposed to be’s this, Ken.” They sighed harshly, their face twisting to find the right words. “Yous, yous shouldn't do that, I think. It's bad. You're a bad person.”

“You’re surprised?” Ken drawled. “You found me, working with a cult, illegally hacking a power grid. What made you think I was a good person? Because I went with you? That wasn’t kindness, that was self preservation.”

“But, yous were supposed to be my friend-”

“You’ve never had a friend. You’ve had me. And whatever he is. That’s not friendship. That’s codependency. Though I’m sure you’ve never heard of that before.” Ken took a step forward.

“You’re nothing but a scared child who doesn’t understand why everyone around them dies. You couldn’t even save your own parents.”

“Hey!”

Ethan raised his voice at Ken to stop him from talking. Had he ever been this mad at someone? He didn't think so.

But then again, he had never seen Bart actually look _upset_ before.

“Bart has a lot of friends! There's Dirk and Todd even though they think they're strange. There's Todd's sister! She thinks Bart is pretty cool? And there's me! I could bail out any time, and I don't! Because Bart's cool! And they're my friend, you know!? And you can't yell at them like that!”

Ethan took a deep breath.

“ _Bart_ is going to be, super… killing you. Obviously. But they won't be abandoned for it like you did.” Ethan blinked a few times, nodding his head once.

This was such a stupid move.

“Good job there, string bean. Ya done? Or like, did you want to keep going? Cause I’m bored, and I have things I could be doing if you’re just gonna preach at me.” Ken gestured to the monitors while staring blankly at Ethan.

“I think Friedkin was right. You are Holistic. You're a, a, Holistic Dumbass.” Ethan turned back to Bart, and held out the crowbar.

“You should do your thing.”

Bart looked forlorn as they grabbed the crowbar from his hands.

“Wow, ‘Friedkin was right’. Adrien was wrong, the end of the world came early.”

“I'm going to pretend that _wasn't_ terrifying.” Ethan went to step out of the way of Bart, but then put his hand up. “Is that supposed to mean something?”

“It’s nothing you need to worry about. Not even the great Marzanna could stop it if they tried.”

“Oh I think they're going to try.” Ethan shared a look with Bart for a moment. “You got this, Bart. He isn't worth the trouble.”

Ethan took a few steps back as Bart weighed the crowbar in their hands. They bit their lip, and their shoulders rose as they took a deep breath. Finally, they looked up to meet Ken's eyes. The room was completely silent, save for the yelling coming from down the hall.

They were alone.

“'Dis isn't gonna feel nice.”

“Because any time with you does?” Bart grunted in agreement.

“Yeah.”

They threw the crowbar at him, and Ethan covered his ears as Ken screamed, the crowbar lodged in his abdomen. Bart barreled forward, picking up a keyboard on the way where Ken was sliding down the wall. Ken moaned.

They keyboard was slammed into his head, and on his way backwards, there was a sickening crack as he hit the back of his head on the concrete walls. Ethan watched him fall to the floor, clutching at the bleeding wound in his stomach.

“Ain't my fault.” Bart frowned, really frowned, down at his pathetic figure on the floor. “The universe says I gotta.”

“It, it won’t matter. P-Priest will find Jörmungandr, and everything will end. Y-your universe can’t s-save you.” Ethan mouthed the name Ken had spoken to himself, narrowing his eyes. Where had he heard that name before?

It was definitely a thing. Dirk would like this.

“Priest? The boring one? Guy's dead, Ken.” Bart laughed to themself, and Ken shook his head slowly.

“N-not after Adrien is through with that wolf.”

“Todd? The short one?”

“It doesn’t m-matter. You’re too late.” Bart grunted.

“So is he supposed to like. Do somethin’? Dead people can't do stuff, Ken.” Bart sounded amused, and if Ken wasn't saying things that were more than worrying, it would have calmed the panic in Ethan's chest.

Was he saying what Ethan thought? It was a distinct possibility. He stepped forward careful to step over the fallen chair to avoid tripping into the growing pool of blood on the ground.

“What does that mean? Are you bringing Priest back to life? And tell us fast because I think you're dying. It would help us out?” Ken laughed, blood falling from his mouth.

“Ask Incubus. He’ll know. Knows more than he says.”

“There's like, four of them? Or six. Or something.” Ethan looked to the empty wall, trying to calculate just how many there actually were. Did the pack count?

“Well doesn’t that suck for you.” Ethan sighed.

“I guess.” He looked at the crowbar in Ken's stomach, the area around it drenched in blood. “See you later.” Bart grunted again, and with a swift movement, pulled the crowbar out of Ken's body with a sharp twist. Ken couldn't help the sound that came out of him as he grabbed at his stomach.

There was blood on Bart's hands, literally.

“Guess I gotta says bye now, Ken.” Bart looked at the red on their hands. “It was fun. Kind of. We got a dog. So uh, thanks, I think.”

With a swift movement downwards, Bart brought the bloody end of the crowbar down onto the center of Ken's head. The moaning stopped.

Ethan looked away; he might be sick if he saw the mess that Bart had made. He rested his gaze on the computer screens instead. They were still alive with activity, and he could see the wolf pack moving through the hallways in one of the cameras. In another, he could see Dirk running through a corridor. He thought that he may have even seen Vogel on one of them, but that particular one was glitching too badly to make out much of anything, much less a specific person.

Near the screen with the map was a list of names and dates. Many of the dates were far older than a hundred years, with one dating all the way back to the 900s. Ethan had no idea what he was looking at, but if Ken had been working on it, it had to be important. The top of the screen read Jörmungandr and Hel. That definitely didn’t sound good. He pulled out his phone and snapped pictures of the screens before turning back to Bart.

They were still staring down at Ken, and hadn't made a move to actually pull the crowbar out of his skull yet. They had a strange expression on their face.

“Hey, Bart? You, gonna be okay?” He asked. He saw Bart barely lift their shoulders to shrug.

“Ken was supposed ‘t be my friend. Buts he's just, not a very good person.” They turned their head ever so slightly to make eye contact with Ethan. “Don't do that.”

“I won't. I'm not an asshole. I promise. Ken is- was, a very bad person. And I’m sorry that he couldn’t be what you wanted him to be. But, I have no plans on going anywhere anytime soon. Well, I mean, we need to go find the others. But, we’ll do that together.”

God, he wished he'd brought his bag. There was usually something there to make them feel better.

“Hey, Bar-” Ethan stopped talking as, somewhere in the building, loud screaming started up. He turned to the open doorway with wide eyes.

“Okay, yeah, we have to go. Bart?”

Bart nodded, turning and pulling the weapon out of Ken's head. Their eyes lingered on him for a moment.

“Yeah yeah. I'm comin’.”

They raced out of the room, sprinting down the hall and back into the maze of hallways and empty rooms. They needed to find the screaming.

* * *

**The Art Of Drawing Pentagrams**

Dirk raced through the halls. He was close, he could smell Todd and Vogel, somewhere, ahead of him. The panic seeping off of Todd had increased and it was making it hard to focus. If he could just find them, they could deal with the panic together.

Together.

He rounded a corner and heard Vogel shout. Just one more door.

Dirk shoved through into a small room. A group of people stood circled around Vogel, who was standing stock still in the middle of some sort of symbol drawn on the ground. Dirk had a brief moment where he thought it looked an awful lot like the symbols from the Patrick Spring case, but that’s not what drew his immediate attention.

Todd was there. Todd was okay.

Todd was running towards Vogel.

“Stop! I said stop!” Dirk felt his leg muscles tighten, he couldn’t move. Todd continued forward, pushing through the group and into the circle. With a strength Dirk didn’t realize Todd had, he shoved Vogel backward who tumbled over himself and landed just on the other side of the symbol. Dirk glanced back up at Todd and they locked eyes.

He found him. It was all going to be fine. Dirk felt a soft emotion begin to form in his chest as a shadow crossed over Todd’s features.

And then the world shattered.

Dirk felt a white hot knife slice through him, tearing his heart, his very soul, in two, and he could confirm that that was the feeling and not a hyperbole. But there was something worse. This wasn’t just torture with Priest, this was the end of all things. This was what death was supposed to feel like; not a whisper, but a scream.

But it didn’t make sense, Todd was right there. Todd was–

Falling, his eyes having closed as his body hit the floor. Dirk blinked, unbelieving for a moment. The utter lack of something in his chest pulled him back to the moment and he felt a whimper rise in his throat.

This couldn’t be happening. They had been so close. He had been right there.

Dirk had been too slow. He had failed. Again.

Todd was gone.

“Todd!” He saw Vogel launch himself forward, kicking back on one of the men behind him, who in turn fell into another. Vogel threw himself onto Todd’s body, dragging him out of the circle as the group around them backed away with low muttering. His voice grated Dirk’s ears.

Everything was suddenly much too loud.

“Todd! Todd! Dude! Man come on!” Vogel hadn't seemed to register Dirk's presence yet as he tried to shake Todd, his whole body rocking with unsteady breathing. “Pup! Man! You gotta get up!” Todd’s body was limp.

He wasn’t moving. Why wasn’t he moving?

Dirk felt like the air around him wasn't real. Even his breathing felt forced; everything suddenly had the sensation of being wrong, just a little bit to the left. It was like a vital part of him had been ripped away. Everything in the universe, all of it, it was wrong.

Todd was dead.

“Man! Man. Todd, I'm sorry. Man wake up! Todd! I didn't mean to do that!” Vogel’s words could barely be made out as he gasped for air, his whole body quaking horribly. He was still holding Todd, trying his best to shake him awake.

“Please! Todd, please you gotta- you can’t- please, Todd.” Vogel had dissolved into sobs, his words coming out in between gasps. He bent down, resting his forehead to Todd’s and took several shaky breaths.

“I’m sorry. Please, I’m sorry. You can’t leave. Everyone will hate me. Dirk's gonna hate me.” Vogel spoke, looking like it was more to himself than anything else. He took a deep gulp of air as he looked up, glancing about the room wildly for an answer. In his panicked haze, he skipped right over Dirk.

Dirk could move his legs again, but it felt like he was going to be stuck there, in this moment, forever. The man, who had been standing off to the side, the one who had been shouting at Todd, sighed heavily.

“Well, that’s just perfect. Now who am I gonna order around? You, did it work?” One of the other men nodded, not daring to speak over Vogel's screams.

“Perfect. Then we don’t need the other one let’s– oh. It’s you.” Dirk looked up, realizing the man was staring over at him, the others turned as well, watching carefully. A memory stirred in Dirk’s mind. He had seen this person before, where had he seen him before? The voice sparked anger in his chest.

It was him.

“Fenrir.”

The man, Fenrir, Adrien, or whatever, stared at Dirk carefully as a grin spread across his face. If not for the… Well, for the numbness that was currently overtaking just about everything, he would have been angry. Or scared. Or both.

“Oh! You must be Dirk! I have to give you my condolences, Todd really is, or, was, something.” Adrien continued to smile, crossing his arms. “I have to admit, you're not really my taste but, I suppose Todd must have seen something in you.”

Adrien turned his head, looking at something Dirk couldn't see. Sighing, he shook his head, and then turned back to Dirk.

“Right, well. We’ll leave you three, or well, I guess two, alone. I have to go say welcome back to Mr. Priest, I’m looking forward to meeting him. See you around, Gently.” Adrien smiled at him before disappearing behind the crowd of men, and Dirk didn't bother to watch where he had run off too. His eyes were drawn back to Todd, who had now been dropped by a hyperventilating Vogel. The boy was on all fours, gasping. Something was wrong. Why was he here again?

Footsteps sounded in the hall behind him. Someone was coming.

What was that smell? It smelled vaguely familiar.

“Vogel?! Vogel!” Amanda burst in from behind Dirk, knocking him over as his knees buckled upon impact. He sank to the ground, not feeling the pain that flared in his knees or the palms of his hands. Amanda froze as two brown wolves poked their heads in from behind her, growling. They sniffed the air, their eyes eventually coming to rest on Vogel’s hysterical figure.

“Oh shit.” Amanda’s voice was breathless. Dirk could hear her heart rate begin to skip, becoming more and more irregular the longer she stood next to him.

Someone pushed past Amanda, and Dirk was just able to register Martin, in his human form, sprinting into the room with a bat. Martin took a moment to make eye contact with Dirk before switching his gaze to Vogel, gasping terribly on the floor. Martin threw his bat on the ground, approaching Vogel with the two wolves as Amanda stayed still behind Dirk. He heard her whisper Todd's name over and over again.

“Now, you gotta take a breath, Vogel.” Martin crouched, his hands outstretched in front of him. Vogel kicked out at him, scrambling on his back as he connected with Martin’s jaw.

“I killed him man! I killed him, I killed Todd-”

“Vogel, now listen-”

“It’s my fault! I– I was stupid! I shouldn’t have– and he– Everyone keeps dying man! Everyone…” Vogel stopped talking as he brought his hands to his head.

Amanda was tailed by Farah as she made her way to Todd's body, becoming more and more silent the closer she got. Dirk watched as Amanda’s body started to shake and she fell into Farah, a cry escaping her as Farah held her up.

Todd. Todd was dead.

Over to the side, Martin had taken a tight hold of Vogel to stop him from hurting anyone else. His flailing had become more erratic, trying to kick his way out of Martin's grasp as he screamed at him, inconsolable. There was a distinct bruise forming on Martin’s face, and on his lower arms. The two wolves, Gripps and Cross, had laid down on either side of them, as if daring anyone to come near.

When had the group of men left?

Dirk felt someone crouch down next to him, and didn't move his gaze as rainbow hair came into view. Beast poked him.

“Bibbit?” Dirk stared forward, unresponsive as Beast poked him again.

“Bibbit sas?”

Dirk blinked. Was he sad? Did sad feel like the whole world didn’t matter? That here and now was never going to end no matter how much time passed? Dirk wasn’t sure sad was a big enough word.

Todd would know. Todd had done this before. Had this been how Todd had felt when Dirk had died? Dirk couldn’t imagine that Todd had felt worse, but, it didn’t matter. Todd couldn’t feel anything anymore. All the emotions were left for Dirk.

“Bibbit real sas? 'bout Tob?”

When Dirk didn't respond again, Beast made a frustrated noise. She put out her finger, as if telling him to wait, and bounced over to Farah who was standing next to Amanda. She had collapsed next to Todd, her head resting on his chest while her shoulders shook with silent sobs. Beast pulled on Farah’s shirt, pointing at Dirk.

“Bibbit sas! Sas! Far hep!” Farah didn't object as Beast pulled her over, still looking shell shocked, casting a few quick glanced back at Amanda who hadn’t moved. Farah turned blinked, taking in Dirk’s blank form, and crouched down next to him, trying to draw his attention. She took a steadying breath.

“Dirk? Dirk, I need you to respond, okay? Can you do that?” Her voice was even, her training allowing her to focus on the problem and not the emotions.

“Dirk, can you–”

“He’s gone.” The words sounded hollow, and Dirk wasn’t even really sure he had spoken them.

Farah bit her lip, nodding slowly.

“He, he is, I don’t know what happened, but–”

“He’s gone. And this is all my fault.” Farah shook her head, deciding against trying to console him with physical touch. She lowered her voice, trying to sound calm.

“Dirk, _how_ is this your fault? There was no way you could have known.”

“Of course I knew. I get people killed, it’s what I do. It's my fault. Just like last time. Wrong.” Dirk's voice could barely be heard over Vogel, who was still kicking and screaming at the Rowdies to let him go. Dirk took a breath, feeling it catch in his throat.

“Wrong wrong wrong. Always wrong. Always dangerous. I sent Todd to that shop and now he's-” Dirk stopped talking; he couldn't continue. It didn't matter, anyway. He wasn't sure anything really did. Dirk finally looked up at Farah.

“The universe has broken.”

“The universe isn't broken, Dirk. Okay we, we just have to get through this. We need you to stay with us.” Dirk shook his head, blinking slowly. It didn't matter. Nothing mattered. He muttered to himself.

“The universe has broken.”

He could hear more footsteps and saw Farah turn at the sound.

“What happened? We heard screaming.” Friedkin had caught up, panting slightly as he stumbled into the room. Dirk felt his chest tighten. The universe was right there, it was so close. It was punchable. But he couldn’t stand, his legs weren’t working. He’d punch the universe later when he was less, something. Friedkin looked down at Dirk, who was nearly blocking the entrance where he sat, and a frown spread across his face.

“He’s gone. You let this happen.” Dirk banged his head back into the wall as he felt the pain digging into his chest. Farah started at the motion and she started whispering, cautioning against hurting himself and that everything would work out.

“Wait, what? Who– Oh shit, Todd.” Friedkin moved into the room, stepping around Farah slowly.

“We can’t have that. We can fix that. We can? We can.” He moved forward, crouching next to Todd looking up at Amanda briefly.

Dirk buried his head into his knees, wrapping his arms around his legs. Nothing could fix this. No amount of solved cases, or magic, or time-travel could ever fix this. Todd was gone.

Todd was dead.

The pain in his chest threatened to collapse his lungs as he tried to take a breath. But maybe that didn’t matter. Todd was gone, and the universe was telling him it had the answers. There were no answers that would make this better. The universe was broken; permanently.

“What are you doing?” Dirk could hear Amanda speaking, her voice cracking from crying.

“We’re going to fix everything. Stay back.”

But Dirk wasn’t listening. He was drowning, and a small part of him hoped to follow Todd.

* * *

**What To Do When Your Spouse Breaks Up With You**

To say that Hugo Friedkin hated the universe would be accurate, but a little harsh. They had gotten used to each other’s company and the universe had even brought him back to life, technically. Which was super cool.

But he hadn’t expected to come back to the, void, or whatever it was. Not when he had just been looking down at Todd.

“Hey, you there? What happened?” Friedkin looked up, his head clear for the first time all weekend. It felt… lonely. He didn't like it.

_I pulled us out of space-time momentarily. I need to speak with you, and well, Todd, but you won’t be there for that bit._

“Space what? Did we like, teleport again?” He frowned, squinting and trying to see anything he could in the endless expanse of darkness.

The universe hummed around him, pushing him away from that thought and into another.

_No. It’s like, I stopped time, so we could talk. Does that make sense?_

_“_ Like, not really?” Friedkin narrowed his eyes at the darkness around him. He could have sworn he heard someone sigh. Why though? He wasn't being annoying, was he?

It was a distinct possibility.

_I figured. It’s fine though. I have to go now. I’m going to send you back but you’re going to be alone. You’ll be you again. Do you understand?_

“What?! But like, you're so cool man! You give me all these shooty power things that make me all… super… hero-y.” Friedkin gestured his hands wildly, trying to make his point clearer with bigger movements. He looked around hopefully, waiting. Surely, the universe understood what he was saying.

_I know. And that was fun, the hero stuff. But in order to save Todd I have to go. I want to make sure you’ll be okay when I leave._ The universe hummed closer, quieter. Friedkin frowned. He wasn't used to people asking about his well-being, much less all knowing forces that controlled reality.

“But, they don't even like me? The detective guy and the crazy vampire punks or, whatever. They like, hate me? I am so screwed if you leave, I think?” He exhaled harshly, crossing his arms at his chest. Martin was definitely going to hit him if he was left unguarded, and if not him, either Dirk or Amanda.

_I can’t argue there. But, if we save Todd, they’ll hate you less. I need Todd. He has, some things that he has yet to do. And while I have loved, or well, enjoyed, being real with you, I think it’s time to go home._

“But he's so boring! He's like, short and loud and totally hates me. More than that Dirk guy. Where am I even supposed to go? The moon?”

Friedkin resisted the urge to throw his hands into the air, huffing. He wasn't leaving. He couldn't.

_Hugo, deep breath. It’ll be okay. The future, is cloudy, but bright. I promise. You can do this without me._

He looked to the side, his face twisting as he tried to think. It was hard to think in this place, like his brain was slowed down to almost a halt. He sighed, letting his arms fall back to his sides. Stupid universe, with it's stupid rules, always telling him what to do.

“Can I keep the cool power things?”

_Oh god no. No you can’t._

“What!? Why!? They make me super cool! And! That stupid blonde vampire can't punch me with them.” Friedkin shuddered as he thought about facing down Martin alone. He knew that Martin was intimidating, but he was pulled up short from his thought as he thought of the shortest Rowdy, Amanda, and how much she definitely wanted to hit him.

Not the universe. She wanted to hit him, Hugo Friedkin.

_You’ll be fine without them. You have friends waiting for you. And a day to save._

“You're like, so confusing? It makes my head hurt.”

His head has been spinning for the last few days mostly, but he's been unsure of what was going on ever since he'd arrived in the backstage of reality, so he was almost used to it by now. He almost had started to enjoy the noise; and now the universe was trying to kick him out.

_I know. But you won’t have to listen to me anymore._

Friedkin wanted to sit down, but he wasn't even sure he was actually standing on anything. He opted for slouching, even though he thought it made him look bad. He groaned aloud.

“I, guess. I mean like, I won't have to look through windows? But it's so quiet and everything else is so… not… that.” He was struggling with words. He was almost always doing that, but now more than ever.

He really didn't want to leave.

_You don’t belong here Hugo. You never did._

“Are you like… breaking up with me? Is that how that, works?” Friedkin shrugged. “I mean like, you were inside of me. That's a thing.”

He looked around. Was that the right term? They weren't dating, but he was definitely being thrown out. It made a negative emotion that he couldn't actually place form in his stomach.

_I didn’t know what hate was until this exact moment. But, no, I’m just letting you go. You deserve a real life, with real people. And I’m never too far away._

Friedkin sighed. This was so, entirely awful.

“If I get stabbed again, I am so blaming you.”

_I’ll miss you, too._

“Better save that, stupid Todd guy. 'cause like, I don't know. You're supposed to save him or whatever.” Friedkin pointed into the darkness. “But don't like kill me! Because that's just super rude. Even for you. And me.”

He frowned, pouting a bit. If he had to get kicked out just to save Todd, then the universe better do it right.

_This won’t kill you. Relax. Are you ready?_

If he had been standing on something, Friedkin would have stomped his foot. He looked up.

“I guess. You're fault if I get punched.”

_If the universe was so kind._

And then everything went black.

  
  
  


Todd's breathing quickened as he gasped for air, sitting up straight in defense of whatever came his way. His head was foggy, and he couldn't remember for the life of him how he got here. All he did remember, however, was the sight of Adrien as he'd converged on him. His breath caught, and Todd instinctively touched his shoulder.

He felt nothing.

Taking another, slower breath. Todd found that he was no longer dizzy. It took him a second, but eventually his eyes found what was above him, and he found himself staring at the very fabric of reality.

“Hello, Todd Brotzman.”

Todd jumped, turning on the spot and cringing away as he tried to find the source of the voice. His eyes eventually landed on what should have been, by all logic, Dirk.

Dirk!

Well, it certainly looked like him, at any rate. The eyes were all wrong though, lacking nearly any pigmentation, and the expression on his face was as unfamiliar as anything Todd had ever seen. His breathing picked up quietly as he stared at the being, who was staring back.

“Are you alright?” Not-Dirk asked quietly. Todd blew air out of his mouth, shaking his head.

He was in the backstage of reality.

So who was this?

“I- I mean, like, I guess.” Todd looked over his shoulder to make sure no one was there. “Yeah. Sure. Why not.”

“It’s alright if you are not. I can leave if you would like to be alone for a moment.” Not-Dirk tilted his head slightly to the side. Todd blanched. As much as he was on edge, the thought of being alone in the dark… it felt significantly worse.

“No! No, uh, I'm, cool. Just like, uh, confused?” Todd slowly rose to his feet, checking behind him again. He had to be sure; there wasn't a wall to block his back. Better safe than sorry.

“He can’t reach you here, if that’s what is worrying you.” Todd nodded.

The gods were always complaining that they were barred from this place. Logically, that should have eased any tension he had. But he couldn't get the image of Adrien, holding him over his own head by Todd's throat, and his eyes red as he laughed at Todd.

“I guess.”

“What’s the last thing you remember?” Not-Dirk slipped his hands into his front pockets and leaned slightly onto one leg. The movement looked oddly forced. Like he wasn’t quite sure how to relax.

The last thing Todd could remember nearly sent him into a hysteria as he thought about it, and he pushed it aside quickly. He could remember being on the ground, tracking blood everywhere as Adrien closed in on him. The memory was trained by a loud but distant ringing sound, and it was making his head spin.

It was better to leave it alone.

“Just, uh…” He trailed off, looking away. “Adrien.”

“I’m sorry that you had to deal with him. It was never my intention.”

“Yours?” Todd frowned as the being stood back up straight, leaning forward in curiosity. Todd instinctively took a step back before he realized that whoever, or whatever, it was wasn't trying to hurt him.

“Forgive me. It was recently explained that you should give people space who are panicking.” He took a step back slowly, frowning at Todd carefully. “Do you remember seeing Vogel?”

A loud memory clawed at Todd's head, and he cringed as it tried to make its way to the surface, quickly giving him a headache.

“Vogel? But, he can't- shit!” Todd grabbed his head, his eyes burning as he tried to force away tears. Something was wrong.

Something was very wrong.

“Your soul is fractured. The healing process is nearly complete. You will probably find the returning memories rather painful. Can we- I, help?” Not-Dirk hadn’t moved. Todd took a ragged breath, Vogel's screaming momentarily overtaking him.

“What? No, I- what is going on!?” Todd shut his mouth tight to stop himself from sobbing as the memories pounded at his brain, bouncing around inside his skull.

“You died. Your soul was shattered, and your life energy redesignated. I am here to assist you in anyway that I can.” Not-Dirk looked almost sorry. Todd looked at him, his eyes wide with what he thought was panic. No.

That couldn't be what happened.

“Shit. Shit. He did it. Adrien did it.” Todd felt the blood leave his face. “What about- where's Dirk? Is he- is Vogel, shit.” Todd was actively crying now, his head pounding too harshly to stop it. He couldn't feel Dirk at all.

“Everyone is safe. You saved Vogel. I have pulled you out of space-time to heal your soul. The others are, frozen. Waiting for you. If you want to go back.”

Todd sunk to the ground as another memory came forward, sending him to his knees as he watched Dirk's face fall in his mind's eye.

“Who the _hell_ are you, man!?” He cringed inwards at his loud voice, startling himself.

“We met briefly. You were injured and I looked different. I’m the universe. Is there anything I can do to help?” Not-Dirk, the universe, asked quietly. They still hadn’t moved, watching Todd carefully.

Todd tried his best to catch his breath. He was safe. He was fine.

He was perfectly fine.

“How long is my head going to hurt?” He tried to push himself up, still surprised by the lack of pain… everywhere.

He did indeed remember what what was apparently the universe was alluding to. He recalled, vaguely, seeing Friedkin standing in his apartment, as Dirk told him that that was the universe. He couldn't remember much of that length of time, not because he'd died, but because of the massive amount of blood he'd lost. He must have left Friedkin's body. Todd took a steadying breath.

He was safe.

“Pain doesn’t exist here. Any pain you feel is psychosomatic. If you want it to stop, then just believe that it doesn’t hurt.” They said giving an odd smile.

“You are, like.” Todd groaned. “I can't just, believe that, I'm- I'm like, sort of freaking out here. This is insane.”

“You can believe anything you want. People do it everyday. Believing you’re not in pain may not be easy, but it’s possible. We’re not in a hurry.” The universe lowered themselves to the ground, mirroring Todd’s position. Todd glared at them carefully, before slowly removing his hands from his head.

“Why am I, still even here?” He was supposed to have stopped existing, after all.

“I was able to catch the pieces of your soul and put them back together. Now I’m just waiting for you to be ready to make a choice. I want you to be as comfortable as possible before we proceed.” The universe rested their hands in their lap and tilted their head. “Is there something I could do to make you more comfortable?”

They probably couldn't kill Adrien, so no.

“You, are. I am literally talking to an insane person. I'm talking to the universe, after I died. I'm dead. I'm, this is, like, not okay.” Todd closed his eyes. “Where's Dirk?”

“Back with your body. And the others. He’s safe.” They frowned. “Would you prefer I looked different? I thought this form would be comforting.”

Oh god, Todd hated this.

“It's, fine. I just- wait. He's with my what?” No. Surely, the universe, who apparently was right in front of him, wasn't that cruel.

“He found you before I could. I apologize for my tardiness. I was, incapacitated when we opened the door to the pocket dimension.” They frowned to the side, thinking to themselves for a moment. “But, no matter. We’re- I’m here now, and I can save you, if you’d like.”

“I have to- Dirk can't, he can't just see. I have to go, I don't know.” Todd froze, suspension finally settling in his bones. “Why are you trying to save me? I like, suck.”

“You don’t. You, Todd Brotzman, are one of the brightest strands in the universe. Why do you think so little of yourself?”

Adrien's voice rang in his ears.

“I- it, doesn't matter. And, that doesn't make sense.” He sighed. “I'm not supposed to like, actually exist right now. You're always super cryptic, can't you just… not be?” Adrien was still in his mind's eye, joined by everyone else who had ever told him the truth about himself. He was awful.

“I can certainly try to be less, cryptic. Your soul is still healing. Is there anything you would like to know while we wait?” They smiled lightly.

Wasn't that the question of the century.

“But why heal me though? I don't actually like, do a lot. I steal Dirk's pizza sometimes, that's it.” Todd frowned, thinking of Dirk. Oh, the things he would like to know. But right now, this felt more important. At least to him.

“There are several ways the next couple of months could play out. Not all good, not all bad. In all of the scenarios where the world is saved, you are there. You’re important. Not just to your friends and family, though, they are very important. You’re important to all of creation. If you decide to go back, you could save everyone.”

Todd breathed, trying to process what they were saying. It felt improbable; Todd just didn't feel very important at the moment. He felt rather small, actually. It felt like a cruel irony that he, apparently important to the universe, was bonded with someone who was constantly dragged around by that very same force.

Very cruel indeed.

“I… okay. Sure. Why not.” The universe seemed bored, but nonetheless having a good time. Todd nodded. “Sure. By any chance, is, you know, that guy like, in any of those scenarios? With me?”

“A few of them, yes. But, he doesn’t have to be.”

“That is, super not comforting. But thanks.” Todd wasn't sure if he could deal with being stuck with Adrien again, but he couldn't let himself get tripped up now. He had a free round of “what's the meaning of life” with the actual universe. “So. You're the universe. Cool.”

“Sometimes. Not when I get kicked in the face. But most of the others times.” They laughed lightly, smiling at Todd. Todd laughed back, nervously.

“Cool. Cool. This is cool.” He felt very distinctly not chill. “I'm, hanging with the universe. I should have expected something like this.”

“There was only a four percent chance we would be here right now having this conversation. You are always beating the odds, Todd Brotzman.” Todd blinked, frowning. That sounded… Strange.

“Four percent? Do you just like, know everything?”

“Yes.”

Todd nodded. This was fine. This was okay. He could deal with this.

“So, question.” Todd started slowly, not sure what to say. But he wanted to know the answer. “Adrien- uh, that guy, he was like, Dirk would have been better without me. What, would've happened. If I hadn't met Dirk?” Todd glanced up at him, his heart beating in his chest.

He meant something to Dirk. He had to.

“If you hadn’t met Dirk Gently?” The universe frowned slightly. “You mean, if you had never met him during the Patrick Spring case?”

“Yeah. I guess.” Todd wanted to know if he meant anything. Maybe Dirk really would have been better without him. Adrien couldn't have been right… probably.

“All roads led to you. No matter what Dirk would have done, he would have found his way to you. You nearly met seventeen years ago, but you were busy and he fell down a flight of stairs.” They laughed lightly. “That was my fault. I got the apartment number wrong and he ended up running away from a parrot.”

“A parrot.” Todd could barely process what was being said, but he was sure he'd probably have a laugh about it with Dirk at some point. Probably. The universe nodded, smiling.

“You’re neighbor. The angry freshman, he had a parrot. Dirk misread my message and he knocked on the wrong door. The parrot attacked him and he ran back down the stairs tripping. You missed him because you decided to take the elevator instead of the stairs.” Todd coughed, unsure if it was a laugh or not.

This was… actually nice.

“Did that, happen a lot? Like, that seems improbable. College me would have run far away from Dirk.” In his defense, his college aged self was kind of a dick.

“You were both similar back then. He was angry at Blackwing, you were angry at the world. You would have made each other better. It was my goal to bring you together as soon as possible to repair the tears in reality. Having Dirk in your life would have attracted The Rowdy Three which would have put them in contact with Amanda far sooner. Reality could have been fixed years ago. But, you both, circled around each other. Like binary stars.”

Todd thought of Amanda, the person she'd been during his college years. She was the smallest kid he'd ever seen, not even ten yet, and already full of reckless abandon. Todd coughed again, thinking of the possibilities of what would have happened if the Rowdies had come into his life back then, only to find a small, loud child. Todd wanted to say they would leave her alone, but something in him knew that that wasn't true.

He could always ask.

“So like, if we'd met back then, I guess, what would have, happened to Amanda?”

“She and Vogel would have been raised side by side. Your parents, despite their flaws, would have welcomed the boys. Maybe not Martin, he would have been in his mid thirties, but the others would have spent most of their time in your home. They would have had a proper family again. The family they have now is fantastic, but, there are certain things that parents have to offer children. A place, somewhere to belong, being one of them.”

Todd snorted.

“You act like Martin isn't an actual dad at this point.” Martin had unfortunately been dubbed the dad friend by a rather drunk Amanda one night, and it had stuck like glue.

“Martin had to grow up far too quickly. He could have used the break that your parents would have offered. Possibly even had a chance to reconnect with his own family.”

Todd nodded; he needed to tell, someone, about this. Maybe his therapist. Maybe Dirk. Maybe even Martin himself.

“I forgot he had a family.”

“They all did. Each and every one of them. It wasn’t my intention for them to be stripped of them. I didn’t, I couldn’t anticipate Blackwing. It was a miscalculation that cost so many of them normal lives.” The universe looked down at their hands.

Todd went to answer him, but was pulled back by another twinge in his head. It wasn't pain, but it was something. It was calling to him. He frowned, looking around and out into the darkness.

“You’ve healed. Or, at least, your soul has been reconstituted. Now, we need to talk about going back.” The universe stood slowly, stretching out their limbs.

Todd got to his feet, wobbly. He felt distinctly different than he had before.

“Back. To Dirk?”

Or to Adrien.

But that was insane.

“Yes. To Dirk. But, I can’t send you back without your permission. It was explained to me that, this, isn’t something everyone appreciates. I don’t want to make a decision for you.” The universe had moved closer, frowning lightly. Todd inhaled sharply, but slowly got himself to relax.

“Appreciate?”

“I can’t, send you back, the way I did with Dirk. Dirk’s body failed. Your soul was shattered. It requires, different systems. But I don’t feel comfortable just, doing it, because, well, I really don’t like being hit in the face.” Todd narrowed his eyes.

He still couldn't feel Dirk.

“Tempting. But, why would I hit you for like, bringing me back to life or whatever? Isn't that, a good thing?” He was completely lost. Maybe it was just the brain fog.

“It is. But, it’s just. The energy needed, to bring you back to life, it’s the same energy that makes the others, what they are. That makes Dirk what he is. If I use that energy to save you, you’ll be like them. You’ll be able to feel what they feel. Does that make sense?” The universe was standing within arm’s reach now. Todd stared at them apprehensively, but swallowed the panic building up inside him.

“Like, holistic? Like I'd be, that?”

“Yes.”

“Oh. Okay, that's…” Todd trailed off. Dirk was going to absolutely hate this, but at least he'd have something to hate in general. He nodded. “Yeah. Okay. Let's, do that.”

“Are you sure? There’s no way to reverse this once it’s been done. You’re going to have this connection for the rest of your life.” The universe raised their eyebrow, watching Todd carefully.

This was fine.

Dirk was going to be pissed.

“Yeah.” His voice was more confident this time around. “Yeah, you can like, do the thing. I'm cool with it.”

“Alright. Then I’ll need your hands.” the held up their hands, palms up. Todd's heart jumped into his throat, for a moment, he saw someone very different standing in front of him.

He could do this.

Todd gave the universe his hands, ignoring the anxiety welling up in him.

“It will be okay, Todd. I know it might not feel like that right now. But you will feel better one day. And, you’re never alone. When all else fails, I’ll be there. Helping to keep you safe.” The universe smiled lightly. “To help guide you away from danger.”

“So, do I just like, stand here, or?” Todd watched the universe carefully, ready to jump back at any potentially hostile movements.

“You just need to relax. Close your eyes, and breathe out. You’ll be hearing from me again, very soon.”

Todd nodded once more, before he battled with his anxiety to close his eyes. He was fine. He was safe. As soon as his eyes were closed, everything started feeling distant straight away.

He took a breath in.

“Be kind to Hugo. He needs it.”

And he breathed out.

* * *

**I Know I Just Died, But Damn, This Place Has Horrible Interior Decoration**

The first thing Todd was aware of was someone by his side, and the sickening image of Adrien filled his mind. Todd kicked away, his eyes still closed, trying to put as much distance as he could between him and Adrien. He didn't get far, his head hitting a leg table, and Todd ended up covering his head with his hands.

“Wait wait I'm sorry wait just-” Todd clenched his hands together, breathing heavily as the last hour flooded his mind. He didn't try to glance up at Adrien, opting to stay cowering against the table.

From in front of him, he heard someone mutter his name.

“Todd? Todd! Oh my god!”

“Hey, it, like, totally worked!”

“I'm sorry, I, I'm sorry I just- don't touch Vogel, I, please.” Todd hid his head in his knees, something nearby trying to cave his chest in.

It was probably Adrien.

“Todd? Hey, it’s okay. Vogel’s fine. You’re fine!” Todd retracted as he felt someone's hand brush against his arm, nearly knocking the table over on its side. Blinking, he finally met eyes with Adrien.

Except it wasn't Adrien at all. It was Amanda, sitting in front of him, her arm still half outstretched. Todd's mouth went dry, his voice quiet.

“Amanda?”

“Hi, loser. You okay?” She looked like she had been crying. Todd shook his head, swallowing with difficulty.

“No I, yes, I mean. Shit. Where's Vogel. Where's Dirk? Shit, where's Adrien. Shit shit-” Todd brought his hand up back to his head, biting his lip.

“Whoa, Todd, it’s okay. Vogel’s, well, he’s alive. And Dirk is,” she paused glancing to the side, “that as well. It’s okay. You’re fine.”

“No, wait, Amanda did you. Is he not…” Todd trailed off. “What, do you mean? Alive?” Amanda shared a look with Friedkin.

“Everyone is just, a bit, um, upset at the moment. But it’ll be okay.” She tried for a smile but she had started crying again, tears sliding down her cheeks.

Todd cringed as a harsh yelling finally reached his ears, and his head swiveled around to look behind them, where Martin was holding Vogel in a tight grip to, apparently, stop him from breaking something. He looked hysterical, and if Gripps and Cross were anything to go by, he was. Todd frowned, half covering his ears at the sound before turning back to Amanda.

“What- what's, going on? Amanda? Friedkin?” Todd squinted up at Hugo, who shrugged.

“As of about two minutes ago. Yup.” he said, nodding.

“That is, so not helpful.” Todd leaned his head back, trying to take a deep breath. He just needed to breathe. Adrien wasn't here. He was safe.

“Did, um, did you happen to talk, to like, the universe or whatever? They said they would talk to you, I just like, don’t know if they, did, that.” Hugo asked, frowning as if the longer he talked the harder it was to form a sentence. Todd blinked.

“I- I guess? Is that what that was?” He sighed, lowering his hands. “Are you like, friends with the universe now?”

“Um, it’s, weird?” Hugo tried.

“You're weird.”

Todd glanced around the room, biting his lip. Something was still trying to eat at him, tightening his chest, and despite his panic he didn't think it was him.

“Where's Dirk?”

“It’s okay, Farah and Beast are with him. You need to stay on the ground. You could be hurt.” Amanda scooted forward slightly, taking in the blood covering Todd’s shirt. A bitter laugh escaped Todd's lips.

“I'd say. I need him, where- where is he?” Todd flinched as Amanda tried to get a better look at the tears in his shirt. “Can you, not, please?”

“I just, I’m trying to help.” She lowered her hands, her voice falling.

“Please just, I don't, you don't, I- just, no touching. Okay? I need to find Dirk.” Todd tried to grab onto the table to pull himself up, but an inhuman noise came from him as pain shot through his arm, and he fell back to the ground, grabbing it.

“Todd?! Hey–” Amanda reached forward but stopped, quickly dropping her hands, “Where does it hurt? What happened?” Amanda's eyes focused for a moment on the tear in his shoulder, which was obviously shaped like a bite. Todd turned to hide it from view.

“Nothing. Nowhere, I'm, fine. I'm fine.” He used his right hand to push himself back up into a sitting position. Vogel had stopped yelling from the corner, and was staring at Todd with wide eyes. Martin looked relieved.

“Friedkin, can you, like, take his pain or whatever, like with Dirk?” Amanda glanced over at Hugo who had taken a couple steps back. He shook his head.

“No, whatever, that was, it’s gone.” He said, gesturing with his hand.

“Dirk? Was he, is he okay? Where is he?” Todd took an unsteady breath, his eyes flitting wildly past Amanda to try and find him.

He wasn't there.

“He’s with Farah and Beast, he’s, he’s not hurt, he’s just upset. You, you remember, right? When…” Amanda frowned down at her hands as she trailed off.

“When what? I-” Todd froze. “Shit. Shit Amanda. Shit. Is he okay? I need to, talk to him or, I, something.” He tried to push up again, with his right arm only. Todd tucked his left arm in his sleeve to try to hide the bruising on his hand as he got unsteadily to his feet. There was a residual burning sensation in his legs.

“Okay, sure, he’s just, over by the door. Can we help? Hugo could, I don’t know help you stand or whatever?” Hugo frowned over at being volunteered.

“No!” Todd's voice was louder than intended, and he made a conscious effort to lower it when he saw both Hugo and Vogel jump. “I don't, need, help I'm. Fine. Sorry.”

“Okay.” Amanda nodded, backing up towards Hugo slightly, casting him a concerned glance.

Todd took a steadying breath before glancing over to the door, and nearly regretted refusing the help as he fell against the wall. Dirk was curled up by the doorway, with Farah and Beast crouched down next to him. Focusing what energy he had, which was a considerable amount for just having died, he was able to feel a strange numbness coming from Dirk. Sliding to the ground as his legs gave out, he pulled Beast back and crawled over to Dirk.

“Todd?” Todd shook his head at Farah, who's eyes widened as she stared at him. Shuffling up to Dirk, he closed his eyes, ignoring the confused sounds that Beast was making.

“Not, I know, Farah, just.” He opened his eyes, watching Friedkin tug Farah farther away from them. Todd frowned, hesitating as he touched Dirk's jacket. It didn't seem real.

He didn't deserve Dirk here.

“Dirk?”

Dirk didn’t respond, instead he pulled away slightly from the contact. Todd, starting a bit as Dirk jerked away, nodded his head.

“Okay. Fair.” The way Dirk was so unresponsive unnerved Todd, and he clenched his bruised hand, hoping the pain would give him some sort of idea. “Are you, okay?”

“Go, away, Farah.” He mumbled into his knees, turning his head slightly.

“I'm, I'm not- I'm Todd. Dirk?” Todd leaned back against the wall hiding his head in his arms. “Can you hear me?” Dirk made a sound close to a laugh.

“Todd. Sure. The universe isn’t that kind.” Dirk tightened his grip on his knees. Todd sighed.

“Yeah. I agree with you there.” Of course the universe would do this to Todd. Take away Dirk, literally kill him, and then as soon as he gives Dirk back to him, he's just taken away again. Now that he was back, Dirk wasn't even talking to him. He wondered if he couldn't inquire about punching the universe, and the thought made him look at his hand, the blues and purples blossoming all over it.

He lifted his head.

“Hey man. I'm like, alive, I think, if that counts. Physically.”

“I think I would know that, if it were true.” Dirk shifted slightly, turning his head back towards Todd, but still not opening his eyes. Todd gave a small smile.

“Can you try?” He didn't add the fact that he didn't want to watch Dirk so upset, not after the last two days.

Not now that he could finally see him.

“Try what? Thinking? I think I–” He had opened his eyes and froze. “Todd?”

A quiet cry came from Todd's throat, and when he spoke, his voice was just a little bit broken.

“Hey.”

“You, you can’t be here, you, you were–” he reached out a hand, stopping halfway to Todd’s arm and frowning. “You– died.”

Adrien's face filled Todd's mind as he lowered his head back into his arms, still looking at Dirk. He doubted he would ever take his eyes off of him again. His fist clenched as the spark of pain shot through his shoulder.

“Yeah, I. Yeah.” He nodded. “That's uh, accurate.”

Dirk slowly moved his hand the rest of the way to Todd’s arm. He let his hand hover over the fabric for a moment, before frowning again.

“Your shirt.” Dirk mumbled. Todd laughed quietly.

“Yeah. Sorry about that. Maybe, we can get a new one.” Todd carefully took Dirk's hand, his own bruised one making Dirk's look positively healthy. He squeezed his hand, barely even believing that he was actually there. It was doubtful that he was ever going to see Dirk again, and now he was right here, right in front of him.

“I’m sure we can make time to do that we– we have time.” Dirk’s eyes cleared slightly as he smiled. “All the time.”

“Definitely.” Todd frowned, turning away as something hot and uncomfortable rose up in his chest. “Hey uh, did you, do you, did you see like, a guy?”

“A guy? I don’t– wait.” Dirk paused. “Yes, there was, he looked very familiar, he– oh.”

Todd took a shakey breath.

“Adrien.”

“Was that? Him?” Dirk asked, squeezing at Todd’s hand lightly. He shook his head, closing his eyes tightly.

“Yeah, I- he's, him. I guess.” Todd could hear murmuring from around the room, but ignored it. Dirk nodded his head.

“Okay, well, that’s, not great. But, we can, take him? I’m not entirely sure. I’m sure Farah could. Or The Rowdies. Bart. Oh my god, Bart!”

“No don't, don't, don't, fight him, Dirk-” Todd breath hitched up as he tightened his grip. He bit his lip, finally registering that Bart wasn't in the room.

They were probably off killing someone.

“We were looking for– well, you, obviously. But Vogel, and Bart, and Ethan, they disappeared. We, were looking for them! Where– have you seen them?” Dirk was looking around the room, some of his usual energy returning. He tried to pull himself up only to slide back down the wall.

“Oh, spinny.” He mumbled.

“Bibbit okees?” Beast mumbled to Farah, who nodded, holding her back.

“Dirk's okay.” She whispered reassurances to her, pulling her farther away.

“They weren't there…” Todd frowned at Dirk. “They weren't- I was, busy with, someone. Something. Nothing. I'm fine.” Dirk looked like he was only half listening, nodding along.

“But Vogel’s here, so, they must be? Wait, busy? Are you, okay? You feel, I don’t know.” Dirk glanced back, frowning. Todd nodded, opening his mouth intending to say something.

Nothing came out.

“I. Yeah. Yeah, I'm- I'm cool. I'm fine.”

“It’s just, that doesn’t really, feel–” The door banged open from across the room. A loud bell suddenly sounded in Todd's head as he stared at the two figures who entered. He dropped Dirk's hand to try and knock the call away, but Dirk didn't seem to notice. Bart and Ethan stepped inside, covered in blood. Bart looked slightly put off, and Ethan looked almost panicked.

“There you are! Oh good, everyone, everyone is here. Um, so, couple things. First, thing, we need to go.” Ethan started into the room, Bart rolling their eyes as they followed. Todd nodded; he wanted to get out of here as soon as possible, and the bells in his head agreed.

“So ones hall went poof, don’t means wes gotsa hurries.”

“That is, exactly, what that means Bart. I think the dimension is collapsing, haste, would be, probably best.” Ethan was almost to the door next to Todd and Dirk, gesturing for everyone to follow him. Cross growled at him as he passed Vogel, who shifted back into Martin's embrace. A glance was shared between Todd and Dirk.

“Oh.” Todd whispered, almost to himself. “I, forgot. It's, like, a dimension. Wait like, is the way out close?”

“Yeah, just, a couple more doors, I think, I’m not sure, I’ve been following Bart.” Ethan pointed back at Bart who had stopped to stare at the circle drawn on the ground.

“Cool. Eth, can wes keeps this?” Ethan groaned.

“Just, I’ll buy one for the apartment, can we just, go?”

Bart frowned.

“What's it for?”

Todd visibly cringed, looking away from Dirk. He shrugged.

“It's uh, for a thing. A, spell or whatever. It's nothing. I'm fine. It's hot in here.” Todd used his right hand to fan out his tattered flannel. The bells in his head were trying to drown him out.

_Stop talking._

“Wait, spell? Like magic? Like magic, you might use to, bring someone back to life?” Ethan had stopped moving, and was frowning down at Todd.

“Unfortunately.”

“Oh shit. Um, right, well that’s I guess bad thing number two, but we should probably talk outside, away from the collapsing subspace.” Todd sighed, staring down at his shoulder as his heart seized up. After a moment of consideration, he decided that the panic attack was probably worth it, and looked up towards his sister.

“Can you, help me walk? Farah, can you get Dirk?” Farah nodded, stepping forward to pull Dirk away. Todd wanted to reach out for him, but knew that he shouldn't.

“Wait, Farah, I’m fine. I can walk on my own.” She released him for a moment as he swayed to the side, only to catch him again. “Right, nevermind, this works.” Amanda walked over, and crouched next to Todd.

“Is this going to be okay?” She held out her hands, waiting.

No, it most certainly wasn't.

“Yeah, I'll, be fine.” Todd grimaced as he took Amanda's hand, and his knees nearly gave out as she gripped him up tightly. Sharing a look with her, he nodded, his voice quiet and just a little bit too high. “I'm fine.”

“Okay.” She turned back towards the others. “Boys, Beast, universe guy lets go.” Friedkin groaned slightly.

“I’m not, whatever.” He followed after Ethan and Bart with the others close behind.

Todd wasn't sure they would be able to find the right door out, but Ethan's panicked state, mixed with Farah's guidance and Dirk's guessing, eventually got them to an area that Todd recognized. It was the main entrance, from when he'd been dragged here in the first place. He laughed as Ethan opened the doors, with help from Gripps, who rammed into it. Falling into the grass, Todd started laughing so much that, suddenly, he was crying.

He was _outside._ He was with Dirk.

It was freezing.

The darkness of the middle of nowhere was all encompassing. The small group of broken buildings were made all the more sinister in the small starlit area, and Todd half expected Adrien to walk out of the shadows, taking it all away again.

He was in control.

Todd looked up to the sky, taking in a breath.

“We got out.”

“We did.” Amanda said. There was a loud popping sound from behind and they turned just as the light from the door blinked out of existence. “Just in time. You think this guy could be less extra. I mean, an abandoned mental hospital, really? So B-list horror.” She laughed lightly, glancing around at the buildings.

“He's uh, he likes to be dramatic.” Todd bit his lip. “So, I guess he's… gone?”

“It does seem like that.” Amanda walked them after the group, away from the buildings and back towards the road.

“I just, what if, he comes back or. Or something. He'll- I won't be able to, ignore him, or anything. I'll have to. I'll-” Todd exhaled as his breathing does up again. “I'm fine. Everything's cool.”

“Okay. It’s just, you know, it’s okay if it’s not right? Like, that’s totally, fine as well.” Amanda glanced over, slowing slightly and letting the others walk ahead. Todd shook his head; he was okay, really. It wasn't that big of a deal. Sure, he had… scars, and his shirt was all ripped up, but he was fine. So, maybe he didn't like people touching him right now, that was cool. Everything was okay. He was okay. Adrien wasn't here.

“It was only a few days.”

“A few shitty days. But, we don’t have to talk about it. He can’t get you though, you’ve got us. Plus, I’m fairly certain he thinks you’re dead, so, there’s, that.” She trailed off slightly, sounding like she was aiming for encouraging but coming off as bleak. Nevertheless, it did help to cheer Todd up. Maybe Adrien wouldn't come after him now.

“Yeah. There's that. Thanks.”

“I was worried about you, loser. You can’t just, go off like that. We can, I don’t know, implement some sort of buddy system moving forward. I swear, you guys get kidnapped every other weekend.” Amanda groaned, looking up towards Dirk who had started walking on his own and was glancing back towards them. Todd nodded.

“Yeah. Let's just have Bart follow everyone. Good plan. Or maybe Cross. With a bat.” Glancing over at Amanda. He tried for a smile.

“Have you considered both as an option? I feel like anyone would run from that combo.” Amanda laughed, and for the first time all weekend, Todd found himself genuinely laughing along.

“Oh yeah. The ultimate strike team. The Rowdies and Bart.” Todd shook his head. “We'd scare off customers.”

“Well then it sounds like you’re not gonna have customers for a while. Cause we’re not going anywhere.” Amanda said, glancing over. Todd's pace slowed, frowning.

“What? Why? Don't you have like, things to break or something?”

“Sure, there’s always breaking things. But Friedkin, or Friedverse or whatever said something bad was coming. So, we’re gonna stay, help out.”

“Yeah, you know, Dirk never really explained the whole universe thing in, detail, last night?” Todd shrugged with one shoulder. “Is he, or, was he like, you know. Seriously?”

“Yes. It was, super weird. They like, yelled at each other. It, ya know, you’re gonna have to ask him, it was just, weird.” She said, glancing up at Friedkin who had started glancing around, walking on the outside of the group. “Course that could just be how he is normally. We may never know.”

“I bet.” Todd snorted, remembering the way Dirk would describe him when he would start drinking, chipping away at him filters. “So, he's like, not evil now? He did kidnap our friends.”

“He did do that. But, the universe liked him, Bart seems to like him. Mona does too. Ethan _definitely_ does.” She snorted over the last one, but shook her head. “Something tells me we’re gonna need all the help we can get. Even if the help is, so very stupid.” To emphasize her point, Friedkin tripped over a dip in the path and landed in a ditch. She sighed. “So stupid.”

“You know,” Todd shook his head as Ethan looped back around to pull Friedkin up. “This is, so messed up.”

“Tell me about it.” Amanda said.

When they finally got back down to the van, everyone was milling around, all of them muttering to each other. It became quickly apparent that, though the Rowdy van was pretty big, it was going to get awkward with twelve people. The thought of being in such close proximity to everyone, probably unable to avoid physical contact with at least some of them, made Todd shiver. Thankfully, Amanda seemed to think he was shaking from the cold instead. She let go of Todd, who promptly had to lean into Dirk, to go talk to Martin and Farah. Amanda didn't look happy, and their voices carried in the open space.

“Only got one van, Drummer.”

“I know, just, how many people can it fit, like, comfortably?” She asked, pulling out her phone and looking for a signal. Martin shrugged, leaning against the open driver door.

“Eight, maybe. Ain't got no choice here, 'less you can get the dumb one to work some o’ that magic stuff he's got.” He glanced over to Friedkin, who was shivering in the chilly wind and trying to avoid Beast. Ethan, who was next to him, looked unhappy at Hugo's new development.

“Universe? Can you like, teleport us away?” Amanda asked, glancing over at him. He shook his head.

“It’s like, gone. I’ve got nothing.” He said, throwing his arms up, before quickly returning them to his chest.

“Great. What if, we like, went in shifts? Like a group stays here and then someone comes back? That’s a bit of a wait though.” She frowned, glancing over at Friedkin again. Amanda’s eyes narrowed as she watched him begin to slip into a jacket.

“Where’d you get that jacket?” She asked. Friedkin glanced up.

“Ethan gave it to me.” Amanda rolled her eyes and glanced over at Ethan.

“Same question.”

“Mona was in my pocket, I asked if she could be something warm.” Ethan responded, pointing weakly. Amanda smiled.

“Could she be a car?”

Ethan and Hugo looked down at the jacket, but after a solid minute of nothing happening, Amanda sighed.

“Just, give me the jacket. Mona, can we chat?” Amanda tossed the jacket up in the air. Friedkin yelped as Mona landed on the ground, tilting her head and staring at Amanda.

“But I was helping.” She frowned, pointing at Hugo. “I like helping that one.”

“Okay, well we were wondering if you could help him stay warm in maybe a car, or another van, probably a van.” Amanda smiled, gesturing around at the others. “We didn’t really think through getting everyone back.”

“Cars are funny things. So many moving parts.” Mona bounced on her toes. “How long? I want to be a jacket.” The last part was whispered as she leaned closer to Amanda.

“Only an hour or so, and then you can be a jacket for as long as you want.” Amanda smiled. Mona turned her head back to Hugo.

“Do you want a van?” Hugo nodded slowly, narrowing his eyes, as if unsure. A sigh came from Mona.

“I guess so. Where?”

“Just over by the Rowdies van is fine. Thank you Mona!” Mona walked over nodding her head. In the next blink there was another van, almost identical to the Rowdies’.

“Gotta give 'ya credit, Drummer. Guess we got another.” He gave a pointed look to the two wolves next to Vogel, who was sitting on the ground, his arms wrapped around them. “Need 'em to change back before we go?”

“Up to them, I don’t care.” She smiled, glancing back at the others, “Alright, let’s go home.”

Todd was finally on his own two feet, almost crying with relief as Dirk let go of him. He loved Dirk, really, but every time someone touched him, he kept thinking it was Adrien. After a failed attempt to smooth out his shirt, he nodded at him as the group started to clamber into the vans around them; Cross and Gripps had gone off somewhere with Martin and Vogel, who'd been carrying something for them to wear.

“So. Riding together?”

“Of course, Todd. If, that’s okay?” Dirk frowned, slightly.

“I don't think, I actually want to let you leave right now. Yeah?” He smiled at him. “I missed you.”

“I missed you, too.” Dirk smiled, walking forward slowly.

“New rule,” Todd said, climbing into the back of the Mona van, “Next time we need to go buy something, let's just order it online.”

“Funny story about ordering things online, that’s actually how I met– you know what, it’s fine. I love that rule. It’s a good rule.” Dirk sat down next to Todd, scooting closer. Todd yawned.

“So, how late is it, anyway? Adrien-” He bit his lip. “Uh, my sleeping schedule got messed up.”

“It’s a little past three. So, rather late for me, hopefully you got some sleep though.” Dirk watched Todd as the others piled in, Hugo hopping in the driver’s seat, not that he would actually have to drive.

“Sleep.” Todd blinked. “Yeah.”

Farah glared at Hugo for a moment before he moved out of the way, opting for the passenger's seat as she hopped in. Beast got into their van, but was keeping her distance from Beast. Someone has obviously told her to stay away. Once she was sure everyone was inside, the van started up.

“Well, won’t be long now, and we’ll be home, and you can get proper sleep.” Dirk was frowning, glancing down at Todd’s hand. Following his gaze, Todd jerked his arm back, retracting it into the torn sleeve.

He bounced his leg.

“Yeah. As long as you're there.”

“No place I’d rather be.” Dirk smiled.

Todd leaned his head back, the heat and scent of Dirk in such close proximity washing over him like a blanket. Finally, after two days, he felt safe. The content feeling in Dirk's chest bubbled over, spilling into Todd as the van started down the road. He sighed.

This was okay.

Closing his eyes, he thought that maybe, should they ever see Adrien again, they may just have a chance after all.  

* * *

**So Quick Question, Why Do We Keep Watching Disney Movies?**

It was, by all accounts, a beautiful day. The blinds to the apartment were pulled open, letting in the calming light of the setting sun into the room. The television was playing, the volume low, and even the movie seemed sweeter than usual. They were eating a brand new brand of ice cream, leaning up against each other on the couch as they discussed the movie they were watching. It was Disney; Todd had relented.

“So, what’s this one about again?” Todd asked frowning up at the screen. He was pretty sure it was Coco, but not entirely.

“Todd, it’s the one with the fish. You know the aquarium and the whale. We’ve seen it ten times!” Todd frowned and nodded his head.

“Right. Yeah, I know. I just, forgot. It’s fine.” Todd smiled bumping up against Dirk’s arm. Dirk laughed, snatching Todd’s empty bowl and heading into the kitchen.

“Do you mind tidying up a bit? We’ve got company coming round.” Dirk said from the kitchen. Todd frowned. Who was coming over that they had to clean for? He stood and straightened the magazines on the table and then turned back towards the kitchen.

“Who’s coming over?” Todd asked, walking into the kitchen where Dirk had finished cleaning the bowls, placing them in the rack.

“A client. Don’t you remember? Honestly, your memory is positively useless sometimes.” Dirk laughed, lightly pushing Todd’s shoulder. “He’s coming over to discuss his missing siblings. We’re going to help him find them.”

Dirk walked out of the kitchen and back into the living room, flipping the television off and turned back to Todd. He frowned and gestured forward.

“Is that what you’re wearing? It’s awful.” Todd frowned and glanced down at his clothes. He was wearing a patterned shirt and jeans. He had thought he looked okay.

“Sorry, I can change if-”

“No, I’m sure it will be fine, it’s very, you.” Dirk smiled and glanced down at his watch, tsking lightly. “He should be here soon. Do you mind doing the dishes really quick?”

Todd shrugged and turned back into the kitchen. An odd feeling pushed into his mind. Hadn’t there been bowls in the dish rack? He moved forward and found them in the sink, the remnants of the ice cream still clinging to the glass.

He must have been mistaken.

Cleaning the bowls quickly he placed them in the rack and then headed back out to join Dirk on the couch. Slouching into the cushions, he glanced over and watched as Dirk reading a magazine.

“Anything good?” Todd asked.

“Oh yes. It seems that dolphins are far more intelligent than we gave the credit for. But it’s nothing you’d find interesting. Get the dishes done?” Dirk tossed the magazine back onto the coffee table and glanced over at Todd. Nodding, Todd glanced over at the magazine, the cover was hard to see but it looked almost more like a comic book with the words ‘Don’t Panic’ written in bold font across the front. Why would a comic book have an article about dolphins?

“Um, yeah. All done. So, remind me again who this client is?” Todd glanced back up at Dirk who was scrolling through his phone.

“A very nice man who has decided to pay us for services. Why so interested? Planning on leaving me?” Todd saw the smile but couldn’t hear the laugh.

“What? No, I just want to make a good first impression is all.” Dirk snorted and continued to scroll through his phone.

“Cause you’re brilliant at those.” Dirk glanced towards the door and patted his thighs as he jumped up. Dirk bounced to the door and threw it open.

“Mr. Grayback! Pleasure as always!”

“The pleasure is mine, Gently. Is your Brotzman in?” The man smiled, and even though Todd couldn't see him, he just knew that he was.

Something felt wrong.

“Unfortunately. Todd! Come say hello!” Todd frowned as he stood and walked towards the door. A bell rang loudly in his head as he walked forward. What was that sound?

He made it to the door and froze.

Standing the hall, smiling wide, was Adrien.

“Well, don't you look pleased. Can't even death teach you some manners?” Adrien sighed, patting down his coat. “I assume I can come in? Unless Todd wants to interject?” He grinned at Todd.

“Dirk, get away from him.” Todd said, his voice quiet. How was Adrien here? He couldn’t be here.

“Don’t be silly! Of course you can come in. Todd, be nice.” Dirk moved out of the door and waited as Adrien walked inside.

“It's a nice apartment. A bit old and cracked outside, maybe. It reminds me a lot of you, Todd.” He turned to face the door. “What do you think about it, Gently?”

“It’s a bit shabby for my taste. I prefer nice, modern designs myself, but it’s Todd’s place. So no rent!” Dirk smiled over at Adrien.

“At least he's good for something.” Adrien glanced at Todd, a wide grin on his face. “Sit down, Todd.”

Todd felt his knees go weak but he swallowed, moving forward toward the chair, trying avoid Adrien. This was fine. He could do this. He collapsed into the chair and glared over at Adrien.

“What are you doing here?”

“I'm hurt, Todd. I have a _case_.” Adrien curled his words at the end of the sentence, mocking them. “Besides. I get bored. I missed having you around.”

“Dirk, you have to go. He’s dangerous.” Todd glanced over at Dirk who was smiling over Adrien.

“Dangerous? Is that what we're calling it?” Adrien's voice lowered, leaning onto the couch. “Now, danger isn't what I'd call what you did. There's a different word for that. Do you know it?”

“Screw you, Adrien.” Todd growled. Why was Dirk still here?

Adrien laughed.

“Are you sure you want to play this game with me, Todd? Perhaps we could introduce a new system.” Adrien sprang from the couch, crouching forward to where Todd was sitting. “Do you want to know the rules?”

“I- I don’t-”

“I’d like to play. Todd is boring! How do you play!” Dirk smiled.

“This is the fun part, Gently. We get to ask Todd some fun questions.” He stood, glancing down at Todd. “And everytime he says the wrong answer, I get to break a finger. Doesn't that sound fun, Todd?”

Adrien was laughing.

“Oh fantastic! Todd is always getting things wrong. This should go splendidly.” Dirk smiled.

“Answer me, Todd. I suggest you do so before something happens.” Adrien spoke louder, calling Todd's attention.

“I don’t want to. Please. Dirk, please.” Todd felt the panic rising in his chest. Why was Dirk encouraging this? Didn’t he understand who Adrien was?

Adrien leaned down, putting a hand on Todd's chest to feel the way he was shaking ever so slightly.

“Don't tell me you're panicking already.” He frowned. “It would be such a shame to have to teach you this again. Unless you want _help._ ”

“No! I don’t- I don’t need help. I’m fine.” Todd pulled back leaning into the chair. If he could stand up he could get to Dirk, and if he could do that then he could get him away from Adrien.

“Give me your hand.” Adrien sighed, holding his palm outstretched.

Todd’s hand moved independently of himself.

“Adrien, please, don’t. We don’t have to, I’m listening. I am.”

“I know.” Adrien traced the veins on the back of Todd's hand, speaking in a hushed voice. “You're learning. I'm proud of you. Do you want me to ask a question, or Dirk? Answer me.”

“No, I- please, don’t hurt him. I’m sorry. I’ll listen.” Todd glanced quickly over at Dirk who was smirking at him. What was wrong with Dirk?

“Can I ask a question, Adrien?” Dirk leaned forward slightly, smiling widely. Adrien beamed over at him.

“Of course. After all Todd's done to you.” Adrien gripped Todd's wrist tightly. “We'll just ignore the fact that he didn't answer me. It'll be your pass for today.”

Todd swallowed. This couldn’t be happening.

“What do we say, Todd?” Adrien sighed, putting his hand back to Todd's chest. “Breathe slowly. Before you have a panic attack.”

Todd took a slow breath as Dirk moved forward, thinking silently. Adrien was too close.

“Say thank you.” Adrien released his hand from Todd's chest, frowning even deeper at him. “It wouldn't be great if I had to teach you that again.”

“No, please. Thank you. Thank you. Please.” Todd looked over at Adrien and moved back slightly, the red burn having returned to Adrien’s eyes. It was far more terrifying up close.

“How well behaved.” Adrien traced his arm for a moment before turning to Dirk, blinking a smile back onto his face. “Are you ready to start, Gently?”

“Yes. I think so. Todd, why did you break your promise?” Dirk smiled over, his hands on his hips.

“I, I didn’t. I came back. I-”

“That's not the question.” Adrien hissed in his ear, rolling Todd's wrist with the threat of deciding that his time to answer was nearly over.

“I, okay. I broke my promise because, because, I had to save Vogel. I couldn’t let him die.” Todd glanced down at Adrien’s hand. The panic rising quickly as his grip tightened.

“So selfless. I never would have guessed it from someone like you. I'm proud of your answer.” Adrien ran his free hand through Todd's hair, chuckling. “Shall we continue?”

“Please don’t- please stop.” The bells were ringing louder. Warning against the touching.

“Stop what. You have to be clear, Todd. Or else I can't work with you.” Adrien grinned.

“Please stop touching me. Please. I can’t- it hurts.”

“I know.” But Adrien dropped his hand. “You're doing well. We're going to ask you another question now.”

Despite the slow breathing Todd could feel his chest caving in. This wasn’t happening. This couldn’t be happening.

“No. Please, no.” Todd glanced over at Dirk who was still smirking at him.

“You're doing well. You're making yourself panic. It won't get you anywhere you want to be, will it.” Adrien took a breath smiling being him. “Gently?”

“I don’t have another question. What about you Adrien?” Dirk smiled moving forward to stand behind Adrien.

“There's a thought.” Adrien turned to face Todd again, still holding his wrist with a grip so tight that his hand was feeling cold. “Why do you keep disobeying me, Todd?”

“No, Adrien, please. No. I- you won’t-” Todd gasped as Adrien’s grip tightened again.

“Wrong answer.”

Adrien moved quickly, making Todd flinch, and bent one of his fingers all the way back. Todd cried out as the pain raced up his finger and into his arm.

“Shit! No! I’m sorry! I don’t want to listen! I hate that you can make me do things! It’s why- oh god, please stop.” Todd clenched his jaw as the pain turned from sharp to dull and aching. A bruise slowly beginning to form.

“That wasn't meant to be a difficult question, but I suppose for someone like you I need to start simpler. I'm going to try this with something even you can't misconstrue.” Adrien brushed over the forming bruise. “Do you want to hear it, Todd?”

“I- no, but, no.” Tears were threatening to roll down from his eyes. How could Dirk do nothing?

“Simple first, difficult later. You're doing so well.” Adrien glanced at Dirk. “Why do you think Dirk hates you, Todd? What do you think the reason is?”

“I- he doesn’t or, I thought- I, I don’t know. He, doesn’t, he, I don’t- I don’t know. I’m sorry. I don’t- please.” He glanced down at his hand. That was wrong.

“Why don't we ask him?” Adrien whispered into Todd's ear, smirking. “Do you want to ask him?”

“I don’t want to. Please, I, it’s okay, I, maybe-”

“Oh that’s an easy one, Todd.” Dirk laughed. “You are so positively broken it’s laughable!”

“What do you think? How broken do you think you are, so much that you're ruining his life? Wouldn't you want to get away from all that, Todd?” Adrien traced the bruise on Todd's hand, smiling at him as Todd clenched his hand.

“I’m not– I’m, no, I didn’t ruin his life. He, he’s happy. We’re, happy. I don’t want to go. Please, stop. Adrien. Please.”

“Stop _what_.” Adrien growled, tightening his grip on Todd's wrist.

“Shit! I don’t know. Everything. Existing. Just, go away! Please. Leave us alone!” Todd was having a hard time focusing, everything felt blurry.

“Now what am I trying to teach you about wrong answers?”

“I told you the answer. That, that’s the answer. I- I think. I don’t. I don’t know.” His breathing had started to catch again.

Don’t panic. Can’t panic.

“Of course you don't. We're going to move on now, so make sure you don't fall behind. I want to keep you around.” Adrien glanced to the side. “Are you ready to continue? With your manners still intact?”

“Please stop this. I’ll listen. I’ll do what you say. You don’t, you don’t have to keep breaking, things. I’ll listen.” Todd was crying, the tears blurring his vision even worse than the ringing in his head. He could still see Dirk smiling down at him.

Why was this happening?

“That's good. You're doing good.” Adrien brushed the hair out of Todd's eyes. “You're crying again. Any reason?”

“My hand hurts and the pan- the pain. I, it hurts.” Not panic. Never panic. He was fine.

“It won't hurt if you do good. I promise.” Adrien took a breath. “Why don't you choose who asks the next question, Todd.”

Todd glanced up. He wanted to say Dirk. But, something was wrong. Dirk was, wrong. The bells advised against it. Though, Adrien didn’t seem like a much better option.

“You. You can.” Todd looked down, trying to even his breathing. This wasn’t going well.

“Perfect.”

Adrien leaned forward, tilting his head.

“Why won't you tell me that you're panicking, Todd?”

Of course he knew. He always knew.

“Because I don’t want– I don’t want what happened before.” His voice cracked as the memory came back to him. This couldn’t be happening. Not again. “Please, don’t. Please. I don’t want, please.”

“Breathe. You're going to pass out.” Adrien leaned back, watching Todd carefully. Todd tried for a breath but gasped, his breath catching in his throat. There was something wrong with his lungs. A heavy pressure seemed to be stopping them from expanding.

He was drowning.

“I can’t, breathe.” Todd felt his eyes threatening to close. He couldn’t pass out. Not here. Not now.

“I believe you have an illness. Naturally, knowing you. How do I fix it?” Adrien frowned. “Unless you want to stay here without breathing.”

Todd shook his head. That wasn’t right. He didn’t have pararibulitis, not anymore. Thanks to Adrien.

“I don’t, have that. Not anymore. I just, I can’t, breathe.”

“It's called anxiety. You need to fix it. Stay _calm._ ” Adrien dropped Todd's wrist, finally easing the pressure on it. The command settled over Todd’s chest but did nothing to help his breathing.

“It’s not, not working. I– I can’t–” the room was spinning.

“You're going to pass out.” Adrien deadpanned, glancing at Dirk. “Let me calm it, if you want, Todd. You will pass out.”

“What are you so afraid of Todd? Adrien is amazingly helpful. He’s been more help to me than you have. Adrien, just do it, it’s not like he can stop you anyway.” Dirk snorted lightly, tilting his head to the side.

“That's true. Well, Todd? Before our time is cut short, do you want me to help? Or should I just listen to Dirk.” Adrien laughed. “Answer quickly, before you lose consciousness.”

“No, I– Dirk, no, please. I can’t, I can’t. I’m sorry.” Todd gripped tightly to the arms of the chair. He couldn’t pass out, but he couldn’t breathe. This wasn’t happening. “No–” He tipped forward, the world flipping around him. Adrien caught him before he hit his head on the ground.

“The little rabbit. All alone. What did you do to end up like this?” Adrien shook his head. “Maybe one day you can be something worthwhile.”

Adrien leaned down, kissing him.

Todd inhaled sharply. It was dark, his eyes having closed as he passed out. Someone was holding tight to his shoulders and all sense fled his head.

Adrien.

“Get away!” he shoved out, connecting with something distinctly person shaped.

“Ow! What's that for!?”

Todd scooted back, meeting the wall hard and gasping. He had to get away, or hide, or something. He wrapped his arms around his head and shook his head.

“I’m sorry. Please, I’m sorry.” Oxygen filled his lungs, and burned with each breath.

“Well I _have_ just been hit in the face, but I think the fact you're having a night terror isn't helping! Todd?! Todd?” The voice was much too high.

“I’m sorry, Adrien, please, don’t, not again. Please, I’m sorry.” Wherever he was sitting was shaking and it took him a moment longer to realize it was him. The stupid, scared, little _rabbit._ Useless, and broken.

“Adrien? No, Todd, he's not- Adrien isn't here. It's seven in the morning. In your apartment. I doubt he'd be here. He doesn't even know you're alive. Todd, hey.” The voice got closer. “Can you look at me?”

He wasn’t there? Where had he gone?

“He does. He’s coming. Here. Always knows. I can’t– I can’t, please.” He cried out as the pain in his chest caved in around the center. He was dying all over again.

“Todd, Todd please just. He isn't here, youre, you're safe. You are completely safe from that maniac god. He can't get here. The Rowdies are basically guarding the main entrance. Farah’s upstairs in my old apartment. He can't- please. Please try to look at me.” The voice sounded… well, it didn't sound happy.

“He was here. He, was. Dirk, he, and Adrien. I can’t.” Todd brought his hands up to his face. He couldn’t do this. It was another trick. He would open his eyes and Adrien would be there. He was sure.

“Please Todd, I- I don't know how to, you have to try and, not panic. I can feel it, it's hurting you. And me. And you. You're.” The voice sighed. “Please just open your eyes. Should I get Mona? The cat? Or, space, or something? Todd?”

“I’m not panicking, I’m not, I’m fine.” Todd leaned his head back, opening his eyes and stopping. Something was different.

The light?

“What– what happened? Where’s,” he glanced down. Dirk was sitting near him, watching him closely. But that’s not what Todd was looking at. “Where’s your tie?”

“Tie? I was sleeping. I'm not wearing a tie to bed. I barely had time to even get it off before I completely passed out next to you. It's, on the couch, probably? Why would- nightmare, right.” Dirk faltered. “Because, ties and nightmares probably connect. To something.”

“No, you just, you just had it. And, and–” He glanced forward, the chair he had been sitting in across the room. “But, I, no. This is just, it’s a trick or something. He’s here. I– he knows, I’m–” His throat closed as he tried to gasp for air.

“You were having a nightmare, Todd. You couldn't breathe even I thought there was something physically wrong. I tried to wake you up but you just hit me, in the face!” Dirk paused. “What… what happened? He's not here. Were you, dreaming about him?”

“I hit you?” Todd frowned over. He could feel a slight sting near his chin.

“Yes. Apparently, people having night terrors can hit very hard. Have I ever hit you when I had one? I hope not. I think I might actually have a bruise, though that may also be because I fell into table after it happened.” Dirk glared at the table a few feet away from them.

“Dirk, I’m so sorry, are, you okay?” Todd could feel his breathing evening out. Maybe Adrien wasn’t there? Maybe. Todd scooted forward slowly, the pain in his shoulder and hand making him wince.

“Me? I'm fine. I've definitely had worse. But I don't think you are, which is the issue here because I think you actually have almost drowned in anxiety. Maybe Farah has something to help? Todd?” Dirk was still frowning; he looked upset. The pale light of morning was illuminating his face, making him look even paler than usual.

“I’m fine. I can’t believe I hit you. Let me see.” Todd pushed the panic down as he reached for Dirk’s face. He could do this, this was fine.

“You know, I really feel it wouldn't help your situation. You're already upset, and- oh!” Dirk grabbed onto the bed frame, nearly falling off. Todd pulled his hand back, he’d barely touched him.

“Are you okay? I’m sorry, I just, I’m sorry.” Todd felt his hand start to shake and quickly lowered it, hiding it near his leg.

“What? I simply miscalculated the size of the bed. You'll get upset if you see you hit me. I know you. Very well. You know, I'm rather bad at math, and- are you alright?” Dirk was derailed from his train of thought, the expression on Todd's face momentarily clouded.

“I shouldn’t have hit you. I’m, I’m so sorry. It, won’t happen again. I pro- I swear. I’m not, gonna get upset. I’m fine. I just, I want to make sure you are.” Todd’s throat hurt and he wasn’t sure if it was because he was trying not to cry or trying not to scream. Probably both.

Dirk snorted.

“You had a nightmare, Todd. I doubt there's much either of us can do to prevent having them. I've done a lot of thing being woken up from bad dreams when I was young. You can ask Martin.” Dirk sighed, crawling closer at a slow place. “Yes, I suppose you can look. It's already started to heal though. But if I feel you getting upset I am not saying another _word_ until I've made you some tea.”

Todd nodded and held out his hand. He could do this.

Dirk moved forward within reach and turned his head slightly. A dark purple bruise was indeed already healing on the side of his face. Todd swallowed back a cry and sighed instead.

“You’re right, it’s healing. I– I am so sorry. I shouldn’t have. Are you okay?”

“Naturally. I'm glad you aren't literally suffocating in your sleep anymore. That was very alarming. I nearly called the Rowdies up.” Dirk glanced around the apartment. “It's actually fairly clean, considering they've been up here a lot this weekend. We should give them credit. Still though, I don't trust them not to break something. Rowdies after a nightmare is a rarely a good combination, I find.” Dirk gave a small smile.

“It was just a dream. I’m okay. Really. I’m sorry I woke you.” Todd tried for a smile but it hurt, literally, the pain from Dirk’s jaw bleeding into his.

“Hm, yes, about that whole being woken up thing.” Dirk leaned against the wall. “You can say it's fine all you like, but I was literally woken by you crying and telling someone not to hurt someone else. So. That sounds not very fine to me, but again, I suppose it's not really my business to pry? Is it? I'm not really sure how to deal with this. I'm not rambling, am I?”

Dirk stared at him hopefully.

“Of course not.” Todd said. Feeling a hollowness eating away the panic. That was better. Or at least, fine. “I’d let you know if you were.”

“Oh good. That makes things easier. But, Todd.” His voice became more guarded. “Why were you dreaming about, something so violent, by the look of it? I know that, skipping the rather rude choice names I have for him, but I know he was a bad person. Are you, well, because if you are I can… Well I'm not entirely sure. But I know what that feels like. So, I could try to help?”

Dirk's shoulders fell.

“I don’t remember what it was about. I’m sorry if I scared you. It’s fine. I’m fine. I swear.” Todd said, burying the look on Adrien’s face as he had broken his finger. It hadn’t been real.

He was fine.

“Hm.” Dirk trailed off. “Right. Stay here if you want, but I'm going to find something leftover for you to eat. It helps after bad nightmares I have about Priest. Is pizza- yes, actually, nevermind. Pizza is alright.” Dirk jumped off the bed, stepping over miscellaneous objects on the ground to get to the kitchen. “Come or sit? it doesn't really matter, but I'm going to grab the biggest piece, I'm telling you.”

Todd took a breath. This was fine.

“I’ll come over there. When did we buy pizza last? It can’t still be good.” He stood, his knee twinging and he walked towards the kitchen. Dirk pulled a box from the fridge and spun to face the counter.

“Last night, sometime. The universe decided it wanted to try pizza, and then discovered that it hates it. So it's ours now.” Dirk flipped open the lid; half of the pie was still left. “Big one?”

A bell chimed lightly in Todd’s head and he frowned.

“Um, no thanks. I think I’ll stick with toast. Or something.” The bell stopped ringing.

Side effects. Right.

“Hm. I suppose. I guess eating the pizza does help, but I'll just feel weird eating it alone. Maybe the cat…” Dirk trailed off.

“The cat definitely can’t have pizza. That’s not, no, we buy her stupid expensive cat food so that she doesn’t eat pizza.” Todd smiled lightly. “And it’s fine dude, eat the pizza, I’m just gonna have some toast or something.”

“I've already had my share of nightmare pizza tonight. And now I get an extra slice. Brilliant!” Dirk pulled a piece from the box, promptly starting to eat away at it. Todd grabbed the bread and pulled out a slice while he watched Dirk for a moment.

“So, the universe ordered pizza? That’s like, a sentence.”

“Verily. I don't think it knew how helpful the pizza would be tonight, though.” Dirk paused. “Well, for me I suppose. Not for you. Magical toast, though, I guess? Either way, Friedverse was slightly… strange.”

“Yeah, they seemed, rather, crazy.” Todd said, watching the toaster as he thought back to the blurry memory he had of Hugo in the apartment. Definitely, crazy.

Dirk snorted.

“Oh, you're never going to- you know those panic attacks I have? The flashback ones. They're usually minor really, nothing compared to nightmares, but do you remember those? The Priest ones?” Dirk was grinning wildly.

“Somewhat hard to forget those, yeah. Why, are you smiling?” Todd frowned. Had everyone gone crazy?

“Oh you'll _never_ guess.” Dirk took another bite of the pizza. “I was having one, after Friedverse arrived. He's not very good at emotion. He hadn't felt an actual real one yet besides me hitting him in the face. Anyway, so I was having one, and he decides to just, absorb it! Flashback and all! He passes out from it in barely even five minutes. He passes out!”

“Hold on, what?” Todd frowned. That seemed, insane. Oh god, what if he was still dreaming and this was some sort of crazy dream logic?

“I know! He could do like, a lot. But this was just hilarious. He got so scared that it rendered him unconscious! From a minor Priest panic attack? Maybe I'm just desensitized to them? But no, he could do a lot. He healed my collapsed lung, and teleported us to the apartment, and-

“Hold on. Your what?!”

“Oh it's just a lung Todd. It's fine now, obviously.” Todd frowned.

“When was this?”

“Good question. A bit before you showed up in the apartment, all- well, you know. Right before that, actually. Something about screaming? Apparently that can collapse a lung. It makes sense, actually, and would explain a lot of my encounters with Priest? But it really wasn't that big of a deal, so I just ignored it until they made me sit down to heal it.” Dirk shrugged, frowning as he realized he had eaten the entire piece of pizza.

“Before I showed up, like here. In the apartment. You collapsed a lung?” Todd took another breath. He couldn’t panic, then Dirk would panic. He could do this.

“Well of course, I just said that. Looking back though that happened quite often in my life, so, not really a thing. Why?” Dirk pulled another piece out of the box.

“I just, I, I’m sorry. That’s, my fault that happened. I’m sorry.” Todd took a slower breath. The hollowness was holding back the panic. This was going, fine.

Dirk stared at him.

“No? How on earth is that a possible idea?” Dirk rolled his eyes.

“You said before I showed up, right? Well before I came here I was– um, you know. And I just, I’m sorry you had to feel that. That, sucks.” He felt like he had had this conversation before. Had he?

“Right, well, moving on before we give ourselves heart attacks. Did you know Priest is like, apparently supposed to have had a shotty childhood? He deserves it. Is that mean? Maybe. But I'm bitter. That's a lie.” Dirk laughed softly. “I'm not a bitter person. Tired, maybe. I didn't sleep much.”

“Oh, that’s what it is. Here I was thinking you had somehow ingested caffeine.” Todd smirked. He wasn’t going to push the lung thing if Dirk didn’t want to. “And good, his childhood deserves to be terrible. Though, that’s probably what made him a terrible person. Oh, I see the dilemma. Yeah, I’m sure it’s fine.” Todd looked down at the pizza box. Dirk had pretty much finished it off.

“You know, I'm starting to see a trend in holistic people? Really shitty childhoods, and everyone hates them. Maybe it's a theme. Does the universe do themes?” Dirk shrugged, ducking to grab an energy drink from the fridge.

“Probably. No! Give me that, no more! You’ve– wait what?” The first half of the sentence caught up with Todd as he grabbed onto the bottle. “What do you mean, holistic?”

“Literally what else could that mean? And I haven't had any yet today! Let me have one!” Dirk tried to snag the drink from Todd's hands, but he just set it on the counter.

“No, back up. Who is holistic?” Todd pushed the bottle out of reached and frowned up at Dirk. He sighed dramatically.

“ _Priest,_ obviously. I think I'm being quite clear about this.”

“Priest?”

“I'm not saying his name again. We don't have any panic attack cake left, either.” Dirk frowned. Pursing his lips Todd brought his hands together.

“That _man_ who will remain nameless. Was holistic? Holistic _what_?!” He wasn’t sure it was panic, maybe annoyance, definitely anger towards a very unsharing universe. He should have kicked them harder.

“Oh. Oh! Well! You know, that's a great question which I do know the answer to! It's, something, or I mean he is. Or was? Is? I'd rather not talk about tenses, it really doesn't matter. What does matter I the fact that I have an answer! Given by Friedverse! A very, answer-y answer!” Dirk hesitated, trailing off.

“Dirk!”

“Well, I mean…” He leaned into the fridge, frowning at his hands. “You're not going to like it. The gods know that I don't.”

“I’m liking this less, the longer I don’t know. So just, it’s fine, just tell me. I’m, I’m fine.”

“He was-” Dirk visibly deflated. “He was supposed to help me. Originally. He can find people. He was, supposed to find people to bring to me, and then I was supposed to get them where they were, supposed to be. He was supposed to, I'm- not, do what he did.” Dirk mumbled the last sentence. Todd sighed and moved forward holding out his hands. It was just a little contact, he could handle it.

“Can I have your hands?” Todd asked quietly. Dirk looked up, that familiar distant look in his eye that he got whenever Priest upset him, and nodded, putting his hands in Todd's.

“You’re not him. And he would have been honored to work for you. You’re amazing. The universe is shitty, and weird, and makes you make deals about liking people and– that doesn’t matter. What matters is that you’re better than he is. You’re better than a lot of people, me included. You don’t have to think about him anymore. I’m sorry I brought him up.” Todd’s hands were starting to burn. This was fine.

“I brought him up Todd.” Dirk shook him off, ducking under him and swiping the drink again. “When, the universe failed with him, they made another one. Someone to find things. Amanda.” Todd groaned.

“Somehow, I hate that more. Continue. Is there more, or, no?”

Dirk looked up at him, nearly whispering as he took a sip.

“Are you still panicking? I can feel it.”

“It’s not, panic. It’s annoyance. At the universe and– nope it’s just the universe. Yeah. Solely them.” Todd smirked. “And you really shouldn’t have caffeine dude.”

“I barely slept. You should have some too. You came back to life literal hours ago.”

“Why would I sleep, then? I did all that sleeping while I was dead.” Todd laughed lightly. Hollow was better than pain. Or maybe it was sleep deprivation. Either way, he wasn’t panicking.

“Ah yes. Ten minutes of peaceful sleep.” Dirk laughed along with him, the morning sun finally rising through the windows and shining through the clouds. “I was _asleep_ for much longer. I obviously win.”

“This is a shitty game to win. I’m glad I lose.” Todd swiped the drink from Dirk and downed it. That was almost all sugar and Todd scrunched his nose. “Okay, that’s terrible.”

“Maybe to you.” Dirk glanced at the clock. “So, I regret to inform you that we don't actually have anything to do for a rather long while.” Todd glanced at the clock and frowned.

“Don’t we have work in like an hour?” Todd asked.

“You were just kidnapped? No. We have a few days to rest. I asked Farah and she definitely agreed with it. The Rowdies did make a condition that they would get to stay in the parking lot in case of a problem, though. So.” Dirk beamed at him. “We get a vacation.”

“A real vacation or a ‘let’s go to Hawaii, surprise it’s a case’ vacation?” Todd could already hear the couch calling his name, but he wanted to check to see if he needed to wear tennis shoes. Dirk rolled his eyes.

“We're already on a case. This just happens to be an intermission in it. So no, nothing insane. How about a movie?” Todd smiled and nodded.

“Sure. You want to pick?” Todd knew Dirk hated his picks. They never got to watch the Transformers movies all the way through, not even the decent one.

“Nope.” Dirk bounded into the living room, climbing over onto the couch. “Pick one and bring me another drink. We're going to watch whatever you want.”

Todd felt a twinge in his chest but he pushed it down.

“You’ve got legs. I believe in your drink getting capabilities. And you really wouldn’t mind watching what I want? Even if it’s Die Hard?” Todd raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms.

“Darling, you wound me. I am truly heartbroken.” He grinned. “I don't mind. But I am hoping you'll pick something worth your time to watch.”

Todd rolled his eyes and walked over to the shelf. There were movies he had only ever watched twice because Dirk wouldn’t sit through them. Maybe today would be his lucky day. He grabbed a box from the shelf and threw a quick glance over to Dirk.

“Last chance.” He smiled.

“I refuse to relent. I've made up my mind.” He crossed his arms. “This is my fate and I shall accept it.”

Todd shrugged and popped the DVD in, turning the box away so Dirk couldn’t read the title. He grabbed the remote and sat down on the couch, leaving a little bit of room between them. Dirk frowned, but didn't comment. Todd clicked through to the menu and the theme to The Great Mouse Detective filled the living room. He glanced over at Dirk, smiling lightly.

“Really? Don't you want one of your own movies?” Dirk stared at him.

“If you remember, I bought this movie, after several, several shots of something that was not water. And _I_ made us watch it twice. In a row. I love this movie.” Todd clicked play and smiled as the Disney castle appeared.

“The Great Mouse Detective it is, then.”

* * *

**How Many Cases Can Todd Think About In Ten Minutes**

It had been three days. Three days of sitting and relaxing and doing not much of anything. But eventually real life had to start again, and Todd knew that. He was ready for it. The time he had spent with Dirk in the apartment was nice, but even Dirk was getting rather stir crazy. So when Farah called asking about coming into work, Todd jumped at the chance.

This was good. This would be better than fine. He was sure of it.

“I really don't think we should rush, Todd.” Dirk eyed him from the couch, frowning as he pet the sleeping cat in his lap. “She only called five minutes ago.”

Todd rolled his eyes as he walked out of the bathroom, having changed into a clean shirt.

“It’ll be fine. Don’t you think? You’re bored, I’m bored, this is distinctly, not, boring.” Todd smiled, standing near the door. Dirk gave a small smile, moving the cat onto the couch so as not to wake it.

“Bored is a, subjective term. One that I may not use in this situation, but rather just suggest that whatever activity we decide peruse be… not, stressful. On you.” He stretched his arms. “You do seem rather, on edge, lately. Are you alright?”

Todd felt the odd hollowness build in his chest. With a breath he pushed it back down and smiled.

“I’m fine. Great. Just, I wanna do some work, ya know. Be productive.”

“Hm. Yes, about that.” Dirk looked around for his coat, frowning when he realized it wasn't where he remembered leaving it. “I've, been talking with Farah actually, and it seems that we _do_ have work, just… not anything I would prefer to, bring you around? It's not anything weird, which is quite the achievement, but it has to do with the witches and-”

“And Adrien.” Todd frowned slightly. He could feel his chest start to crack slightly. He was fine. This was fine. This was bound to happen eventually, it was like, a thing.

A really, big, stupid thing.

“No! Not really!” Dirk started forward, shaking his head quickly. “We, she doesn't think so. She says that she's tracked down the coven's base or whatever, but that there wasn't any, godlike energy within the area or… something. Either way, he's, probably off somewhere. With… you know.” Dirk's voice got quieter.

Dirk hadn't liked it when Todd told the group about Adrien's plan with Priest, and really, Todd wasn't excited either. Dirk had spent the rest of the day in a more subdued mood than usual, occasionally laughing when the cat would launch off of the television to try and play with the beams of light coming from the window. Todd, already stressed out, didn't like the added tension of wondering if the cat would turn into a shark every time she jumped.

Todd nodded.

  
  


“Dude, it’s fine. I mean, it’s um, lame, but like, this was gonna happen eventually right? Leaf in the stream of creation and all that?” He tried for a smile. Dirk frowned.

“I'm the holistic one, Todd, and I think that for once we might just have the universe on our side? So I doubt that you'd run into him so soon. Besides, why would he still be here, I mean. He thinks your dead.” Dirk opened the fridge, his frown deepening as he pulled out his jacket. Shrugging, he slipped it on. “Todd? Are you alright?”

“Of course. I’m fine. Great even. Just, don’t you think getting out of the apartment sounds nice? I mean, there’s like, a whole world out there. And you’re probably right, I’m worrying about, that whole thing, for nothing. I’m fine.”

“Oh, no, that's worth worrying about.” Dirk glanced back at the cat. “I mean, you were kidnapped by a, psycho god who tried to kill you. He did kill you. And then there was that _awful_ pain in my shoulder, or your shoulder. And the hand. Is that why it was bruised? Probably, yes, I think so. He seems a bit pent up I think, and could probably do with a bit of a lie in. What do you- Todd?”

“It was only two days. It was fine. It, my hand, I’m just, deficient, in Vitamin C or something. My shoulder’s, fine. It’s fine.” Todd frowned over, hoping that his words sounded more convincing to Dirk than they were to him.

“That is literally the most blatant lie you've ever told.” Dirk deadpanned.

“I’m not-“ Todd caught himself before he started shouting, “it’s not a lie. I feel fine. Just, tired.”

“Hm.” Dirk's eyes narrowed, but he evidently let it go. Brushing past Todd, he waved him forward. “Come on, then. Follow me, Todd. The car is, probably downstairs.”

Todd’s breath caught but he turned, giving his best non upset look as he followed Dirk out of the apartment.

This was fine.

“So, I know it's early, but we can't stop for breakfast. I think I have some PopTarts in my car? Gripps left them. I didn't ask how he got them inside. Best not to.” Dirk rambled to Todd as they walked down to the car, and sure enough, Todd saw at least three boxes in the backseat. The car, for as little use as it got, looked beat up. Dirk was a reckless driver. “Sorry. I know how much you love eggs in the morning.”

“PopTarts are fine.” He hurried, realizing the urgency in his voice probably didn’t back up the fine bit. Todd swallowed. “They’re fine. Better than nothing.”

Dirk grimaced.

“Don't tell me he's convinced you. I may just have to move back to England if he has.” A small smile played at Dirk's lips as he eyes Todd, getting into the car.

“Ha, you wouldn’t.” Todd buckled himself in before pausing, “You wouldn’t right?”

“Well of course not. You're all here in America. No reason to leave.” Dirk looked up from buckling his seatbelt. “You, _do_ know that, don't you?”

“Yeah.” Todd laughed. “Definitely. Know, that.” Dirk started the car and headed towards the office, driving surprisingly normal.

He was having trouble taking his eyes off of Todd, though.

“I suppose so. It's just, you don't normally ask and, being a detective I have to inquire about it. I think. Is that how detectives work? That's what Amanda says. You know, she has some very… strange, stories about you?” He glanced back at the road, obeying the traffic signals for the first time since Todd met him. “You two have a very rival like dynamic.”

“Yeah, she’s always been kind of, aggressive.” Todd said, watching as Dirk flipped on the turn signal, and even came to a full stop before pulling onto the street. “Did you like, take a driving course and not tell me?”

“Oh no, I-” Dirk went visibly red as he looked back at the road. “Uh, I didn't, I'm not good at driving, so, a few months ago I was talking to The Rowdy Three, and. Well, I haven't actually ever felt the need to implement what they taught me until now.”

“The Rowdy Three?”

“Martin, to be precise. I would have asked the others but they were busy breaking into a storefront. He was happy to show me how, though.” Todd saw him shrug. “He’s a rather strange person, and you said you didn't like my driving, so.”

“Well, it’s great, like, I think we might actually make it to the office in one piece.” Todd said smiling lightly.

“I'm glad you like it, Todd. Driving is _hard.”_

Dirk pulled down another street, frowning at another vehicle as it passed.

“It really is.” Todd watched out the window as the buildings moved by, the same ones he saw everyday on their way into the office. They looked, grayer. He would need to ask Martin about color vision, see if that was a weird werewolf thing he didn’t know about.

It took Todd a second to realize that Dirk was calling his name.

“Todd? Are you still alive, or have you been replaced by an empty alien shell?” Dirk frowned at him, going to snap in his face before putting his hand back on the wheel.

“The fact that that is a sentence that could actually happen should worry you.” Todd said, glancing over. “I’m fine, just thinking.”

“About what? There aren't many interesting things on this street. Except for Mrs. Jensen. You remember her. From the octopus case. That was one of our finer moments in life. Though I don't fancy doing it again.” He exhaled. “Sea life can get _very_ aggressive, _very_ fast. Especially if it's not actually what it appears to be.”

“Can’t argue there. That shapeshifter was mean. No, I was just, thinking about colors.” Todd said glancing back out the window.

“Colors? Please don't say this is about the yellow case. That was just-”

“No, just, like, in general. Ya know?” Todd said, looking over at Dirk and smiling. Dirk pursed his lips.

“Depends.” He stopped suddenly a red light, putting his attention back to the road in front of him. “You worry me. Which is saying something, because I've watched you face down a giant, man eating cat. A _red_ cat. And I wasn't worried then.”

“You don’t need to be worried now. I’m fine. I was just, thinking. And what do you mean you weren’t worried about the giant cat? We almost died, dude.” Todd frowned as they turned into the parking lot.

“Only twice. And if you'll remember, I already figured out that it wasn't going to kill any of us. Though I didn't tell you that, but it's alright. It all worked out.” The door slammed shut as Dirk smiled over at Todd through the grey haze of midmorning. “You're alive. I'm alive. Everything's alright.”

Todd smiled and headed for the door, holding it open as Dirk bounced in. Farah was standing at the wall behind Dirk’s desk holding some papers and a box of tacks. She glanced up, and frowned slightly at Todd.

“That was quick. You didn’t need to come immediately you know.”

“Todd wanted to. He's rather stubborn.” Dirk ducked under Todd's arm to dig through his drawers, pulling out, not a candy bar, but a bag of chips instead. Farah rolled her eyes.

“I prefer persistent.” Todd said, walking forward to look at the wall.

There wasn’t much. A few index cards with names on them, a couple articles, the pictures Ethan had taken of the sreens, and two red strings connecting to a card that read ‘Adrien (Fenrir)’. Todd sighed lightly, and clenched his hand, feeling the pain return to his shoulder.

It wasn’t real. It had healed days ago. He was fine.

“This is quite the wall you have here. I love it. It looks very much… detective-y. It’s perfect for the agency.” Dirk glanced at the door leading to the main room. “Did you invite anyone else? I mean, Amanda did say they would stick around to help. Todd, stop staring at the wall.”

“What?” Todd turned to look at Dirk, frowning. He hadn’t realized Dirk had been speaking.

“I _said_ stop staring at the wall. I'm asking Farah something. Honestly, are you sure you're not tired?” Dirk frowned back at Todd, and Farah just shook her head, pulling out a chair to sit on.

“I’m fine. Just, I’m gonna do some, work.” Todd turned to his desk, the pain in his shoulder receding. He grabbed the papers he hadn’t been able finish from the week before and a pen. Paperwork was good. He could do that.

“No Dirk, far as I know everyone is still back at the Ridgely. Why?” She frowned over at him.

“Well they weren't there when we left. And I distinctly heard that godawful music they listen to on the roads while driving here.” His eyes narrowed. “Are you sure you didn't? It would make this slightly problematic.”

Farah had reached for her gun, standing.

“Okay, who is it? Cause like, it’s fine if it’s the others. Dirk. Dirk?” She had moved around her desk and was glancing towards the door. Todd had looked up as well, straining to listen to what Dirk was.

“Ah. I think we've found our answer.”

The sound of the van could be heard distinctly from outside, growing louder as the moments passed. Farah groaned, but Dirk only squeaked with delight as he rolled back on his heels. Todd noted that he even seemed to relax a bit. Why was he so tense?

“Perfect. Now we can… well, we can do something. Why did they come if they weren't invited? It doesn't matter.”

Farah put her gun back on the table and glared towards the door.

“It’s the stupid- I mean, very useful buddy system. I swear to god if they have Bart with them, I’m going to ban everyone.” The music stopped as the sound of a sliding van door and boots on the ground met their ears.

“Isn’t Bart the one we would want here?” Todd asked, leaning against his desk. Farah shrugged and glanced over.

“They’re always covered in blood. We had to buy a new couch!” She groaned. “I just, we need just a little follow up and then you guys can head back. Does that work?” She asked, watching Dirk. He nodded and smiled as Amanda walked in through the door, waving her hand behind her.

“Just chill there! Morning guys.” She strolled in and plopped down onto the couch, smiling around the room. “How’s the first day back at the office going?”

Todd watched Farah eye the door before turning back toward Amanda.

“Are the others coming in?” She asked. Todd knew that they didn’t really have it in the budget to replace anymore walls, and The Rowdy Three were always so keen on breaking them when they came to the office. Amanda waved her hand, turning to look at the evidence wall.

“They’re gonna hang outside. The wall is looking nice. I like the string, that’s new from the last time I saw it.” Todd frowned. Amanda had been helping with the wall. Imagining Amanda huddled over a computer doing research wasn’t the strangest thing he could imagine, she did almost exclusively that when she still lived in the house. But imagining her doing it now, when she had the Rowdies, and magic powers, and things to break; it was odd.

Dirk had started talking animatedly as the conversation left Todd behind, his attention drawn back to the pictures.

This was the first time he had seen them. Not just the pictures but the screens as well, the pain in his shoulder tweaking slightly at the thought of the command that had sense faded. Todd wondered about the information he could have gathered if he had just been able to look at the screens. The information displayed in the photos surely was only a fraction of the information.

The largest of the images contained dates, lots of them, dating amazingly far back. Someone had written on a sticky note ‘sightings?’ and had placed it next to the picture. Along with the sticky note was two index cards that read ‘Jormungandr’ and ‘Hela’. Adrien’s siblings.

Adrien didn’t know where they were. It wasn’t new information, but it comforted Todd slightly, knowing that Adrien also didn’t really have a clue.

Pain fluttered around his throat as his mind pulled a memory forward. He could hear Ken talking about Hela, he had been able to track her. Where had he said?

“Northern Canada.” Todd mumbled to himself, rising from his seat and walking towards the wall. The others had turned at the movement and he could almost feel Dirk frowning at him.

“Todd? What is it?”

Grabbing a pen and a sticky note, Todd scribbled ‘Northern Canada’ and placed the note next to Hela’s index card.

“It’s where Ken said he had traced her magical signature or whatever. We should, we should start there, see what we can find.” Tossing the pen back onto Dirk’s desk he took a step back, still staring at the wall.

They didn’t know enough.

“We’re running out of time.” Todd sighed. The others had gone silent as they watched him stare at the wall.

“What do you mean? Time?” Dirk asked, he had moved closer, still out of Todd’s line of sight but he knew he was near his shoulder.

“Adrien- he said that the universe wasn’t going to make it past the summer solstice. That’s like, in June right? That’s like, just four months. Can we-” he needed to stop talking. The pain in his throat threatened to turn into tears if he continued.

“The solstice. That’s soon, but, we can do it. We can solve this, no problem. Wouldn’t you agree Farah?” Farah made a small squeaking sound before Dirk started talking again.

“See? Farah agrees. We know like two more things than we did this morning. Dare I say we are on quite the roll. But for now, how about we just, take a moment, and do something else, maybe?” He had moved around Todd and was smiling at him.

“This is really great, fantastic information, and Farah and Amanda are on the case. But maybe, we should focus on something else right now?” Todd frowned.

“Like what? Dirk this is-“

“Important, yes, very. But you know what else is important? Die Hard. I’ve never seen the others. There’s more right? I think I would really love to see the others, if that’s alright with you.” Todd nodded before he could stop himself. They should stay here, and try to make the wall make more sense but Dirk was smiling and Todd couldn’t remember how to disagree with that smile.

“Perfect! Farah, Amanda, we wish you the best of luck with the, um, new information. But I do believe I need to see all, how many are there?”

“Six.” Amanda said, snorting lightly. Dirk swallowed and continued to smile, even if the light had disappeared from his eyes.

“I really would very much like to watch all, six, Die Hard films. Today, right now. Todd, could you assist me with that?” Todd glanced over and gestured toward the wall.

“But-”

“It’s fine. They’ve got it, and I’m sure if anything happens they’ll call. But right now, Die Hard. The, um, universe says so. It also says we need to stop and get that purple ice cream. Come along!” Dirk had headed off towards the main door. Todd glanced back at the wall but a little nudge in his head seemed to tell him if he didn’t go with Dirk he’d get hurt, or buy the ice cream shop out of product. It was a real toss up. He sighed.

“Okay, well, just, if you need us-”

“We’ll call. Have fun with movies and ice cream!” Amanda said, waving after him.

Todd followed Dirk back to the car. They could try work again tomorrow, when he was less, something. Hopefully tomorrow would be more productive.

* * *

**Binary Stars**

Dirk spun his chair in a circle around the empty agency room, the voices from the main waiting room drifting in through the open door. He used his feet to stop himself, swiveling to stare at Todd with a grin.

“Todd! Isn't this brilliant!”

Todd glanced up, the bags under his eyes more pronounced than usual.

“What? The spinning? Yeah, it’s great, Dirk.” He looked back down at the form he was filing, biting the top of the pen absentmindedly.

The others had been banned from the room on Dirk's orders, one of his many attempts to give Todd a chance at having room to himself. Ever since they had gotten him back from Adrien, he had been oddly put off about touching people, so unless Todd was the one initiating it, he refrained from making direct physical contact with him. The Rowdies hadn’t been happy to be banned, but after a look to Martin, had complied without complaint. Farah had only nodded.

Dirk blew air out into the room, shaking his head and spinning in another circle.

“Not that! Though it is fun. The lead! The possible lead that Farah's working on! On the witches!” Dirk noticed the odd twitch in Todd’s shoulder as he nodded.

“Oh, yeah. That should be good. What’s another word for kidnapped that doesn’t sound...like kidnapped?” He asked glancing up from the form.

“You're asking me for words? Is that a smart idea?”

“You’ve used words I’ve never heard of, so, yeah.” Todd said, trying for a smile.

“Taken on a surprise business trip? To… Salem? Or, to that one spaceship. The big small one?” Dirk shrugged. Todd blinked at him.

“Right, so, I’ll just Google it.” He reached for his phone, wincing as he stretched his arm. Dirk frowned at him, deflating onto the chair.

“Todd? Can we play a game? I'm bored.”

“Sure.” Todd said, not looking up from his phone. Dirk giggled to himself.

“Right. This one is called 'I have chocolate in my desk and I want you to eat it’. It's very fun, and the sugar is perfect for waking you up.” Todd glanced up, raising an eyebrow.

“That sounds less like a game and more like you just giving me candy.” He said, smirking.

“It's a game if I say it is. If you lose, or, won't play, you will have to accept my offer of me buying you something help with your sleep. Yes?” Dirk glanced at him hopefully, half wishing he would refuse to play. Better yet, he wished he would play, and lose. Either way, no matter what happened, Dirk would win in some way.

Todd frowned, his eyes glazing over for a moment before giving a one shoulder shrug.

“Why not. How do you play your non-game?” Todd asked, dropping his left arm to his lap and leaning forward. Dirk spun around.

“You open my drawer to retrieve the bar, and I pray that you like white chocolate. Easy.” Dirk put his hand up. “Oh, but you also should eat it.” Todd frowned.

“So, I just have to get up, walk over to your desk, and grab a chocolate bar?” Todd asked.

“Yes. Fairly simple I think. I am an _excellent_ boyfriend.” Dirk gave a thumbs up to Todd, who looked like he could have laughed. He didn't, though. He hadn't since the night before the last full moon. Dirk, for one, hadn't failed to notice that. It was almost torture to see him so unhappy.

Todd stood, watching Dirk as he walked around his desk.

“Just grab the chocolate?” He asked. Dirk pointed at him.

“And eat it. It's good for your health.”

“Well, that’s not true, but okay. This isn’t some weird like, proposal thing is it? Because I swear to god if I swallow a ring I will hurt you.” Todd frowned, taking a step forward.

“Wait, is _that_ what rings are for? Seriously?” Dirk frowned, dropping his hands onto his lap. “I thought they were just like, gifts people got. Like shirts. Or lamps.”

“Yeah see that does not make me feel better about this. Is there a secret ring in that desk? And you just had no idea?”

“Not unless someone snuck into my desk.” Dirk shrugged. “And no. I've been told I don't know much about many things at the best of times. By you, mostly. I don't get out much. Well, okay, I do, just not to normal places.”

Todd nodded as he crossed the office standing in front of Dirk’s desk.

“Great, so I’ll be the one doing the big romantic gestures, that’s just, great.” He opened a drawer and pushed some papers around. “Is, it like, a big candy bar or one of those bite sized ones?” He asked, opening another drawer.

“A big one. That's the wrong drawer.” A smile pulled at Dirk's lips as he watched Todd search through the drawers. “It's in the bottom one. That's my candy drawer.”

“Candy _drawer_? Right, we’re going to the dentist this month, that’s ridiculous.” Todd pulled open the bottom drawer and grabbed the bar off the top, holding it up. “This one?”

“That one. Feel free to take anything else, actually. My stomach has been yelling at me about eating lately and, well, candy is on the bottom of my list. Hence the bottom drawer. It used to be the top. Remember? How I kept it locked?” The sound of the spinning chair filled the room again. Todd nodded as he walked back to his desk, bar in hand.

“I remember you never keeping it locked. But the thought was what counted.” He tossed the bar down on his desk as he sat back and grabbed his pen, intending to return to the forms. Dirk, it seemed, had other plans. He jumped off of the chair, jumping around the room in what was supposed to be a pace.

“I am so excited for this lead, Todd.” He swung his arms around. “I'm not usually one for violence, but that won't stop me from it. If I have to, I'll just have Vogel tell me to hit them. I literally cannot say no to him, so it will all work out. What do you think? Maybe I could smack them instead. Todd?” Todd glanced up.

“You mentioned the universe did some weird, magic or whatever to you right? Did, they mention any odd side effects? You seem, very, jumpy.” Todd raised an eyebrow.

“Yes! Well!” Dirk gestured his arms around the room at nothing in particular. “I'm just, looking out for you. That's all. And if that includes having to hit a witch in the face, then I will. Also a god. I _hate_ Norse Gods. It's all fine…. ness?”

“Right. Maybe, don’t hit anyone. Ever. That seems, like a bad idea. Yeah. Don’t do that. And I thought you _loved_ Norse gods?” Todd snorted lightly. Dirk opened his mouth, hesitating.

“I did! I did. Yes. But, you know. Now I don't. That's all.”

“You don’t have to hate all of them. It’s fine. We can just hate the one. Or, well, the three. Pretty sure there’s at least three on my list. Well, five. It’s– my life has gotten weird. Hating gods.” Todd glanced back down at the chocolate bar. Laughter came from Dirk's direction.

“Ah, yes. That's my fault. And also, Thor and Loki are a bit pretentious. So. Hating them is fine.”

“Having met Loki’s child, I can see that.” Todd said, glancing up at the wall where they had started hanging random pieces of information regarding Adrien. On the side of the wall, there was a large piece of paper that read, in bright red ink, to call “that lighting guy and his annoying witch brother”. Dirk had made it himself, and was rather proud of it.

Todd grabbed the candy bar and flipped it over in his hands to look at the nutrition label. He frowned.

“Huh.” He muttered. Dirk swiveled around to face him, his face falling into a look of concern in the blink of an eye, ready to find something to fix.

“Hm? Todd?”

“Oh, it’s just this chocolate bar. It’s made by a company that’s a subsidiary of something called Ouroborus, International. Why does that sound familiar?” Todd frowned.

“Well I've heard of them. Can't remember where they're located though. I worked a case there once actually, for Loki, and-” Dirk stopped mid sentence, his features lighting up one by one. “Oh. _Oh._ ”

Todd glanced up.

“Did I miss something?” He asked. Dirk squealed, jumping over to the desk to snag the candy bar from his hands.

“The name, Todd! It's perfect! You've figured it out!” Dirk jumped up and down in place. “Todd!” Dirk leaped at him, wrapping him tightly in his arms before letting go suddenly, looking back down at the bar.

“This is perfect! I just need to- Todd?”

Todd had gone rigid, his eyes slightly wide and his breathing had all but stopped. He was glancing down near his shoulder, as Dirk watched his jaw clench and unclench. The jumping stopped, and Dirk frowned.

“Er, Todd? Are you alright?”

“I– um, I– yeah. It’s, it’s fine. I just. I need– water.” He stood, swaying slightly as he headed toward the kitchen. Dirk put out his arm, both to stop Todd and and catch him from falling. Setting him down, Dirk looked around.

“I'll get it. Don't… I'm not sure. But don't do that, whatever it is.”

“I’m not! I’m– not, doing anything. I just, I’m fine. I just need some water. You, you can stay here, if you want, and I can just, get it. I’m fine. It’s fine. You’re– fine.” Todd went to push himself off the floor only to gasp as he put weight on his left arm. Dirk sighed, putting out his hand.

“Stay here. I'm getting water. And an ice pack? And maybe a snack. For me, I mean. Probably pineapple…” Dirk muttered to himself quietly as he left the room, steering himself to the kitchen. He was gone for a few minutes, all the while Todd made no move to get himself off of the ground.

Todd closed his eyes before his breathing got out of hand, the shadows warping into a tall, dark figure.

It took another minute, but soon, he could hear Dirk approaching. He breathed a sigh of relief; being alone felt too unsafe, almost. He wasn't entirely sure why. Dirk raised his hand, showing the items he was holding as he walked back into the room.

“Things!” Dirk set a water bottle down next to Todd, and pulled over the chair he was spinning on. “I also got you this pack, for your arm. Not sure if it will help exactly, but you're welcome to try.”

Dirk tossed down the ice pack into Todd's empty lap. Todd started slightly, as he looked down at the pack.

“Thanks, my arm is, it’s fine. Thanks, though.” Todd held the ice pack for a moment before placing it over his left hand. Dirk's smile grew back onto his face as he watched him, and leaned back into his chair.

“I've also got pineapple, if you want any. Not very good though. I think it's outdated.” This apparently wasn't stopping him though, because he was eating out of the can with a fork.

“No! I, no, I don’t like pineapple. I– I’m okay. Thanks.” Todd continued to stare at the ice pack.

“Well, that's not suspicious at all.”

So instead, Dirk dissolved into silence.

“Todd?”

“Yeah?” He mumbled. Dirk put the can on the table, his stomach suddenly full.

“Just… get better soon. That's all. It's.. that's it.”

“You don’t have to tell me what to do!” Todd snapped. “I can– I– I’m sorry. I didn’t–”

Dirk jumped out of his chair, wringing his hands.

“No! Nope, no! It's, quite alright! Quite alright! I'm just, going to, go. And… do something. In the kitchen. Something, important. Alone. Yes. I'll- see you, Todd.” Dirk rushed out of the room, a strange feeling trailing in his wake. The room was left in silence.

Todd sighed after a minute.

“Dirk! Wait. I’m sorry. I– Shit!” He had tried to push up with his left arm, but it gave out, sending him back to the floor. Todd laid there staring at the ceiling.

“He was right. I am broken.” He mumbled to himself. The pain in his shoulder, the pain he knew wasn’t real, returned, sending fire down his arm and into his finger tips. He tried for a deep breath but only gasped.

“I’m sorry.” Todd tried again, his voice just barely a whisper.

Footsteps. There were footsteps.

“Dirk? I– shit. Stupid arm.” Todd cradled his left arm as he sat up. He glanced towards the sound. As the door opened, he saw Amanda's head poke through the door.

“Dude? You okay? We heard like, a crash or-” Amanda saw Todd on the ground. “Todd!?” She rushed into the room, kneeling next to him.

“Todd!?”

“I’m fine, I just, um, tripped, and, fell. I’m fine.” He waved at her, trying to stand. Amanda caught him as he fell back, accidentally putting more weight on his arm.

“Sure. I'm sure. That's normal.” She set him back down, trying to see if there was anything off about his left arm. “And why is Dirk sulking? Did something happen?”

“No. I– maybe. I can’t– I– I just. I don’t know. It’s nothing. It’s fine. I’m fine.” He mumbled. A frown spread across Amanda's face.

“This isn't fine, Todd.” She tried to pull him up. “Get up. Someone's going to have a look at you. Cross or Farah or whatever. Come on.”

“I can do it myself! I don’t need you to– I just, I can do it myself. I’m sorry. I–” He pulled away from her hand and leaned against his desk. “I’m fine. I am. It’s nothing.”

“Then get up and come on, or I'm putting Gripps in charge of your kitchen.” Amanda’s frowned deepened as she took a step to the door. “You'll be fine. Just come out.”

“I don’t need you telling me what to do!” Todd snapped. “I am perfectly capable of making my own choices. I said I’m fine.”

“You know what?” Amanda snatched at the chair, pushing it towards him and nearly causing him to fall over. “Fine. Stay and sulk here. Have fun in your den.” Amanda stalked out of the room, and Todd caught a glimpse of more people on the other side before she closed the door behind her.

Todd sighed. Tipping his head back.

“I’m fine.” He tried. “I am fine. Fine. Super, fine.” He glanced down at the candy bar that had been forgotten on his desk. He grabbed it, pulling the wrapper off. He walked over to the wall and stuck a pin through the wrapper, glaring at it for a moment.

“Just, super.” He growled.

* * *

**Oh I Get It, The Universe Really Is Learning**

Farah was examining her gun for the fifth time in the last seven minutes, standing outside the door as they waited in silence for the signal from Amanda that there was no trace of a godly signature anywhere in the area. Farah wanted to kick down the door already, but Amanda had been able to stop her. They had to make sure Adrien wasn't there, even though they were already fairly certain. Amanda had said something about making

sure she would have to miss out on punching the bastard before they broke into the building.

It was good enough for Farah, and as for Todd, it meant that he got to postpone this. So it was perfect.

Dirk was holding lightly onto Todd's sleeve, the pale moonlight illuminating his face. Todd could see the way Dirk kept glancing back at him, unsure if Todd would be dragged away again. Dirk held on just a little bit tighter, trying his best not to upset him.

Farah sighed.

“Where'd your sister say she was going?” Farah glared at him, biting her lip as she kept her breathing deep and steady.

“Just up to check and then back down. She’s got Gripps with her, I’m sure it’s, fine.” Todd mumbled glancing back in the direction Amanda had disappeared. Farah laughed.

“Your sister could take on Hades. She _has_ taken in Hades. She won. She's just, taking a long time. I'm sure it's nothing but, we have to be aware of it.” Farah's anxiety had been easier to control lately, but the whole incident with Adrien had caused it to spike back up.

“I think I would have preferred Hades.” Todd watched the door. Amanda was fine. She had Gripps. It was fine.

“Oh, Hades was a very polite gentleman. Do you remember his dog? Classic.” Dirk's voice sounded too loud in the quiet, even though he was probably doing his best to whisper. “I think he was flirting with me though? Why do Gods always have to do that?”

“At least Persephone wasn’t trying to get at you. I swear, she’s, something.” Todd snorted lightly, glancing over. Persephone had been more than a little handsy, and smelled way too much like orchids.

“Well that's only because of your sister. They got along _very_ well. I would not like to see that couple. It's a good thing Amanda pissed them off. Probably.” Dirk flashed a smile, trying to lighten the mood.

“Is pissing off the goddess of spring and the lord of underworld really a good thing?” Todd smiled back. So they couldn’t grow tomatoes anymore, and terrifying dogs followed them around. And he was pretty sure Demeter was plotting his demise. He still would have taken all of that over–

It was fine.

“You know, I think Persephone was flirting with Tina and me too. She kind of looked bored.” Farah glanced over, frowning.

“Yeah, gods are just super at being bored.” Todd said, glancing towards the sound of a door closing. Amanda and Gripps were slinking along the building, hiding in the shadows. Or, well, Amanda was slinking, Gripps was walking in the middle of the sidewalk loudly eating chips.

Todd sighed.

He watched them jump through the street, and after a few minutes, they'd joined the group. Gripps eyed Todd for a moment, but quite unnaturally, he didn't say anything.

Amanda clapped her hands together.

“Right, so, no god energy. Yay. But, it did sound like someone might be home, so, there’s that. Farah, you good for a fight?” Amanda was smiling far too wide for someone who was about to go beat up some witches.

“Definitely. I was able to make out more than one set of voices, you?” Farah exhaled in relief.

“Maybe two or three? Not more than four. We can take ‘em. No problem!” Amanda smiled, holding her hand out to Gripps who handed over the bat he was holding. “Batter up! I’ve been waiting all week to use that one.”

“That is brilliant, Amanda. And slightly terrifying. I'll just, be here with Todd, not doing the hitting.” Dirk laughed nervously; Amanda scared him just a little bit. She scared a lot of people after her fight with Hades.

“Dirk, we talked about this, you have to come in with us. Clues, and hunches and all that jazz remember? You’ll be fine.” Amanda looped her arm through Dirk’s and pulled slightly. “Besides, it’ll be fun!”

“You know, you have a very warped definition of fun. I question it. Besides, we can't just leave Todd. There are witches! Spooky, very scary witches who are probably… spooky. With, hats.” Dirk trailed off, glancing back at Todd and still not letting go of his sleeve.

“Dude it’s fine. I’m gonna stand guard. And they don’t wear hats. They wear beanies.” Todd tried for a smile but a heaviness had settled in his chest. In through the nose, out through the mouth. Repeat.

Dirk rolled his eyes.

“I refuse to believe that they wear anything but large hats. There are pictures, and- ah!” Dirk yelped as Gripps patted him suddenly on the back, nodding with a smile.

“No worrying! Gonna stay with Pup, Brit!”

“Uh- what?”

“Dude! We’re gonna smash shit! Come on, Todd will be fine! Right?” Amanda asked glancing over, an eyebrow raised.

“I’ll be fine. It’s not a big deal.” Todd said, nodding. Gripps shook his head.

“Way sorry, Drummer! Staying!” He crossed his arms with a large smile. Amanda rolled her eyes, heaving a sigh.

“Fine, whatever. Lame! Come on Dirk, I guess you get to smash stuff after all!” Amanda pulled him forward and back the way she had come. Dirk gave a squeak of protest but couldn’t get his arm free of Amanda’s grip. Farah waited a moment, glancing over at Todd and Gripps.

“We’ll be right back.” She said. Todd nodded.

“We’ll be right here.”

Farah nodded, taking a deep breath. The next moment, a loud sound filled the air as she kicked the door open, Amanda whooping after her and dragging Dirk inside. Whatever was happening, it was loud. Gripps shrugged.

“So, passed up the opportunity to break some shit?” Todd asked. He wasn’t sure if he had ever been left alone with Gripps before. And he wasn’t really sure what he liked other than breaking stuff and watermelon PopTarts. The bells in his head rang quietly and he pushed them away. Gripps put his hand in his pockets, leaning back against the wall.

“Got something.”

“Like, a cold? Or, like, a thing?” Todd asked, frowning over at him. The Rowdy flashed him a grin in the darkness.

“Gotta treat. For the sad shit.” Gripps pulled something out of his pocket. “Catch.”

Todd scrambled to catch the colorful object that Gripps tossed. He expected PopTarts, but the wrapper was too long for that, and far too green.

“Skittles? Why, why do you have these?”

“Got 'em from that shop for you. Like skittles?” Gripps gave a pointed look to the package.

“No, I do! I just, didn’t realize you knew I liked Skittles. Thanks.” Todd went to open the wrapper and paused. “When you say you got them from the store, you don’t mean purchased do you.” Todd glanced up and Gripps smiled.

“Money’s numbers. Like numbers. Money's boring, though.” He gave a thumbs up. “Broke it real good!”

“Right, well. Candy’s candy. Thanks, Gripps.” Todd opened the package and poured some into his hand. He popped them in his mouth and glanced over. “Wait, what do you mean the ‘sad shit’?”

Gripps gave a wild gesture, centering the focus around his chest area.

“All that sad shit! There's a lot living in your chest! Brit gets it sometimes. Martin too. You gotta fight all that shit!” He was moving his hands hectically to keep up with what he was saying; had he always spoken with his hands like that? Todd had never really paid attention.

“I’m not, I’m fine. I’m just, tired. It’s– nothing to like, worry about. I’m just, I’m fine.” Todd frowned down at the skittles, the green of the packaging looked ghostly in the darkness.

“No worrying! Just helping. Can't make someone not sad by saying not to be! Nice things help. Used to eat lots of PopTarts after Blackwing.” Gripps paused, glancing up. “Only eat one now. Favorite.”

Todd felt the familiar pang of guilt. He had no business being bent out of shape over two days. The others had it worse. Gripps, and Dirk, and Bart, even Mona. They had spent their entire lives trapped, and they were fine. So he could be fine.

He was fine.

“Know, that Priest guy scares bad! Smiley monster!” Gripps banged against the wall for effect. “Only ever met him once. One time's way more enough, though. Bad dream things for a lot of nights! You got bad dreams too. Smell 'em.”

“You only met Priest once?”

“Martin met him most. Said it was to keep us all safe and that shit! Was way shorter. Smiley man looked way taller!” He showed the heights with his hands, obviously exaggerating.

“But, he gave you nightmares? After just, the one time? I mean, Priest is all kinds of awful and Dirk, he can’t even really talk about him. I can’t imagine what seeing him over and over again would be like.” Todd glanced away, a soft chuckle echoing through his head.

“Think you can, though.” Gripps shrugged it off. “No mattering! One time was a bad time. Got nightmares 'till right before Drummer started hanging.” He pulled a poptart out of his pocket, and started eating at it.

Todd took a breath. The tightness in his chest had returned.

“That’s like, decades. After just one– I’m sorry. That’s, that’s awful.” In through the nose, out through the mouth.

“Ain't got 'em no more! Don't be mattering if it's one time or as many as Martin. Shit still stings if it's gonna sting.” Gripps frowned. “You’re all upset, Pup. Stop talking? You'll get to leave your bad dream stuff too one day!”

Todd gave a soft smile and held up the Skittles.

“In the meantime, Skittles. Right?” Gripps cheered.

Then he paused.

“You're a good person, Pup.”

“I, I don’t– thanks, Gripps. You’re pretty cool, too.” Todd tried for a smile, but gave up halfway, looking back down at the bag in his hand.

The sound of crashing could be heard from above as the others made their way through the apartment. Todd glanced up as a chair crashed through one of the windows.

“Well, it sounds like they’re having a good time.” Todd said, watching the glass rain down to the sidewalk. Gripps pumped his fist in the air as the chair broke into pieces.

“Smashing’s a good fun! Gotta try it! Helps with sad anger!” He chuckled. “'S why Martin's the one who breaks the most stuff.”

“I believe that.”

They glanced up as Amanda shouted down for Gripps. Something about the stairs, but the distance made it hard to hear. Gripps’ head swiveled around, and without a word, he picked up one of the nearby chair legs that had flown in their direction.

“Gotta be back, Pup. Gonna eat?”

“Yeah, I’ll chill here, finish the Skittles. Go, smash.” Todd smiled, waving what was left of the package weakly. The bells had returned as he watched Gripps race towards the door of the apartment.

He’d be fine. He was a Rowdy.

Todd turned to look out over the parking lot for a moment, trying to ignore the bells when he heard the door behind him open again and the sound of feet running towards him. He turned a moment too late as someone crashed into him, sending them both to the ground.

The bells were drowning out pretty much everything else at this point.

“Hey! Stop standing there!” Whoever had crashed into him was already back on their feet, patting themselves down with frantic looks up to the apartment window. “You could hurt someone!”

“Me?!” Todd pushed himself up, turning to look at the man. “Are you serious? I was–”

“Hey! Don't I know you?” The figure, barely visible in the moonlight, frowned. “From that thing?”

Todd could smell the pine before his brain processed the rest. Pine usually meant mistletoe, and mistletoe meant witch.

Which meant–

“Nope. I don’t do, much of anything.” The bells were making it hard to think. He had to stop this guy, but his legs weren’t working, the pain in his shoulder drawing away what little attention he had left.

Dirk.

“You look familiar, man. You work up the North?” The figure crossed his arms.

_Dirk._

“Uh, yeah. Yup.” Legs work. Come on.

“Thank the gods, man! If we were the only one tracking that girl here, the boss would be so mad, am I right?! I mean, what does he even want with that guys sister, anyway? All he ever talks about is how much fun he had with that guy. Do you have the problem in your branch? Hello?” The guy waved his hand. “Hey? Joseph to guy?”

Forget moving forward. Just stay standing.

Amanda. He was looking for Amanda.

_Dirk!_

“Um, yeah, he’s, the worst.” Todd’s head was beginning to spin. He needed to stay up, maybe someone would show up, and, do, something. What was that ringing?

The figure, Joseph, kicked the ground.

“I only took the job because it pays well. It didn't say anything about all this! I- wait. Hold on.” Joseph was pointing at him. “Yo! Holy shit!”

_For fucks sake, Dirk!_

Todd watched as Joseph figured it out. He tried to lunge forward to grab him and missed, stumbling into the wall, the pain in his shoulder had returned almost completely.

“That looked painful. Do you need help getting up? What am I doing!? Those crazy guys are still in my house, I-” He looked up to the window. “Are you secretly immortal or something? That's _so_ cool! You’re alive!”

“Shit, I hope not. Dirk!” Todd pushed off the wall but Joseph was faster. It probably helped that Joseph wasn’t having his third panic attack of the day.

“Holy shit. Oh my gosh! Dude! Your soul got shattered! Into like, pieces and stuff! This is _so_ gonna save my ass from that piece of shit!” The figure yelled in triumph. “I'll see you around, man!”

“No! Wait–” Todd lunged forward, and he would have had him too, if Joseph hadn’t disappeared. He fell to the ground, scraping his hand on the way down and swearing loud enough for the others to hear in the apartment.

This was–

This was bad. Holy shit. This was really bad.

The sound of footsteps running, and then jumping down the stairs hit his ears, but he was having trouble listening.

“Todd? Todd! Are you- oh my, you're bleeding. Did someone hit you? Why did Gripps leave you here?!”

“Drummer called me!”

“He is _hurt_!”

“Guys, calm down-”

“Oh not now, Farah!”

“Joseph.” Todd breathed. He had let him get away.

This was his fault.

“Joseph, what-” Farah faltered, taking in Todd's expression. Raising her hands, she crouched down to the ground. “Hey, Todd. What does that mean?”

“Some, kid. He, he was there. And– he knows.” In through the nose, out through the mouth.

“I'm, sure he knows a lot of things. But whatever it is can't be that-”

“Adrien knows I’m alive.”

Farah exhaled.

“Okay. Okay, that's, a little bad, yes but. It's okay. We can, we're armed to the teeth. Everything is, we, have this under control. We got all the witches in the apartment. And their wall of stuff on Amanda. We're all safe here.” She glanced at Dirk, who groaned. Gripps frowned.

“You missed one. I, missed one. He– Adrien’s looking for Amanda. That’s what the witches were doing. Adrien wants Amanda. And now he knows.” Todd had skipped right over panic and jumped into hollow. Was he angry? He honestly had no idea. Everything, felt, off.

“Well your sister has a track record for beating gods, so she's okay. And, you, did your job perfectly. You're the guard. You're just supposed to say if you see anyone. Are you- are you panicking?” Farah frowned, realization finally dawning on her face.

“No, I’m fine. I just, can we just, let’s just get the stuff and go. I. I’m sorry about the witch.” Todd pushed himself up, the pain in his shoulder sparking but what did it matter?

Adrien knew he was alive. And he was looking for Amanda.

That was just, perfect.

“Right, well, I'm just going to steal you from Farah while she goes and helps Amanda clean up. Gripps is, well, he's being Gripps. He's- are those skittles?” Dirk frowned as Gripps threw another packet at Todd's feet. “What in the world do you have those for?”

“Got 'em for Pup.” Gripps gave him a small smile. “Happy things fighting the sad shit.”

“Thanks Gripps.” Todd mumbled, grabbing the package. He would have taken sad over whatever this was.

Dirk sighed.

“Todd, it's doesn't matter what that, _god,_ thinks. Or knows. If he gets within one hundred feet of you, I'm taking a bat from the Rowdies and- well, maybe not that. But it will be something!” Dirk frowned, his hand hesitating when he went to take Todd's, and then retracting.

“That’s sweet Dirk, really.” Todd said, looking at where he had fallen. If he had just been faster. If he just listened to the stupid bells. It didn’t matter now.

“I don’t think it’ll quite go how you expect, but still, that’s, sweet.” Todd mumbled.

“And he's sounding off again. As per the usual.” Dirk grumbled, standing up. “Gripps, my wonderful friend Gripps, I will be _right_ behind you, but could you do me a favour and take Todd back to the apartment? We'll be there shortly, but it's cold and Todd seems very not fine.”

“Got it, Brit.” Gripps threw his half eaten poptart onto the cold ground, wiping off his hands. “Pup?”

“I’m coming.” Todd said, glancing down at his hand, the bleeding had stopped. So, there was that. He could feel Dirk’s annoyance through the hollowness in his chest and he sighed.

“I’m sorry, Dirk. I’ll see you at home.”

“There's no need to be. I'm sure everything is fine, I just- need to, go and help. Rip some things off of a wall.” Dirk frowned, his voice too high to actually be okay. “I'll see you both. Shortly. I'll have Amanda make something to eat when we get back.”

Dirk bounded back up into the apartment without another word.

Todd frowned down at the ground before looking back up at Gripps.

“You, you eat emotions. All emotions, or just? I don’t know how it works?” He felt like he would regret this idea later, but right now he didn’t care much about anything. Gripps’ frown deepened.

“Eat anything we want. Really wanna and we can pick and choose. Why’re you asking?”

But Gripps had an idea of where this was going.

Todd could hear Adrien in the back of his head. Asking if he needed help. He sighed looking back down at the ground.

“Could, would you– is it wrong of me to ask?” Todd couldn’t bring himself to look back up. He was aware of him though, even as Gripps crouched next to him, one knee on the ground.

“Nah. Something in your chest, Pup?” Gripps was speaking quieter now, sensing whatever was going in with Todd.

“I just, I need to feel nothing for a bit.” Todd held his hand out. He’d seen Amanda do it before, it seemed less aggressive this way.

“Won't last long. You have some sort of wack wall up. Keeping the sad away. Eat it and it won't come back.” He glanced down at Todd's hand. “Same with Martin. And Cross and Vogel and Brit and Drummer.”

“It’s fine, just, whatever you do, it sounds better than here.”

Gripps moved his hand to hover over Todd's.

“Careful about moving.”

A soft blue light erupted from Todd's hand, flowing into Gripps’. The weight that he hadn't even been fully aware of came bursting through the hollowness for a second, and just as quickly, it was swept up in the current of emotions and drained out of him. The empty feeling was gone too, and the painful memories eating at Todd's brain started screaming for a moment before silencing.

Finally.

The light stopped, and Gripps took a step back, pulling his hand back and staring at Todd.

This was… actually, it was pretty okay.

“To- Pup?”

The bells had been muted but were still ringing. They were closer to a personal feeling than what he felt for the others.

“The others don’t know yet.” He said staring down at his hand, the tingling still there as he moved his fingers slowly. “I mean, if that’s what you were asking about.” He glanced up slightly.

“No way, Pup.” He was still frowning, unsure where to put his hands as the excess energy made him shudder. “Thought you said it was fine.”

“I lied.” Todd pushed himself up, and glanced back towards the car before turning back to Gripps. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked. I mean, I appreciate it, really. I just, I’m sorry.”

“Seen stuff like that from Martin. Ain't nothing, but, something to you.” He took a heavy breath, shaking out his limbs. “Asking isn't nothing bad. Just wanna make sure Pup's okay.”

“Thanks Gripps. For, everything.” He turned to head towards the car, but stopped. “And, about the, the other thing. Can you, maybe not tell anyone?”

Gripps nodded, finally putting his hands in his pockets.

“Careful with that memory. Got a big weight on it.” He caught Todd's eye. “Shit isn't any way your fault.”

“Maybe I’ll believe that tomorrow. But, thanks.” The pain had already started to creep back into his chest and he sighed. “Ready to go?”

“Car we used, or new car?”

“You know what, let’s do a new one.” Todd smiled lightly and watched as Gripps took off into the parking lot. It would be fine. He was fine.

Maybe he would believe that tomorrow.

* * *

**Anyone Up For Some Eggs?**

Todd had been staring at the wall for the better part of an hour. Listening to the others chatter around him. The pain in his shoulder had returned and he was trying to mask it from Dirk, who had been watching him with a frown.

He was fine. This was fine. The pain wasn’t real.

“Todd? Are you still alive in there? Or did the witches steal your brain from your body?” Dirk laid his head on the table, staring up at him. Todd barely even shrugged.

“What? I, I’m fine. Just, tired.” That sounded convincing right? Yeah. That was. Fine.

“I'm sure.” Dirk buried his head in his arms; he looked tired himself. “And I'm sure it has nothing to do with the escaped witch, either. Am I correct?”

“No, yes. Wait, I’m not sure. Sorry. I didn’t hear that.” Todd frowned down at his hand which had started twitching. When had that started?

Dirk sighed and sat up, looking around the apartment. The others were spread out, most taking up the couch and the bed. Oddly enough, Bart was sat across from Dirk on Todd’s other side. They had been hovering more recently and Todd wasn’t sure if he liked it or not. At least he knew they didn’t want to kill him.

“You're literally the most suspicious person in the world, Todd. I hope you know.” Dirk rubbed his eyes, glancing at Bart. “Food, anyone? I think Amanda is trying to make something.”

Bart grunted, probably in agreement. Todd gave a one shouldered shrug, the pain still bothering him.

He needed something. Maybe it was food. Maybe it was air. He wasn’t sure. Bart kept throwing him weird glances.

This was fine.

Dirk nodded once, pushing himself out of the chair.

“Don't kill each other.” Dirk stepped over Cross, Vogel, and Beast, who were sitting on the ground, and went into the kitchen. Once he was there, Todd heard Bart shuffle.

“Yo. Werewolf guy.”

“I know you know my name, Bart.” Todd said, glancing over at them. They shrugged at him.

“Names are boring. Gotta says somethin’.” They glanced in Todd’s direction, narrowing their eyes as they leaned back in their chair. Todd just nodded.

“What’s up?”

“'Dat guy who like, kidnapped you.” Bart gazed up almost thoughtfully. “The universe says to kill him. So, if he's comes again, he’s gonna die before he gets close to yous. Yeah?”

Todd wasn’t sure what he had expected Bart to say, but it hadn’t been that. He felt an odd tension uncoil from his chest.

“I– I, that’s, really cool of you. Thank you, Bart.” Todd smiled lightly. If hugging didn’t sound like the worst idea, he would have hugged Bart.

“Well, yous my friend now, so's. And he's bad. I can feel it. Ethan is says so.” Bart gave a pointed look at Ethan, who was dozing off on a chair near the door.

“Ethan’s lucky to have you as a friend. And, I am too. Really, thank you.” Todd smiled wider, he wasn’t sure, but he thought it might have even touched his eyes. It had been a while since he used those muscles. A harsh laugh came from Bart.

“Yeah. Whatever.”

A clattering noise came from the kitchen, and Dirk's voice suddenly started whining.

“They're fine, Amanda! Just let me bring them out-”

“The eggs suck, dude-”

“Amanda!”

After another moment, there was a burst of clinking, probably from plates, and Dirk walked out into the main room, holding up plates. Everyone who was awake cheered, rushing forward to grab one. Eventually, there were only three left, and Dirk placed them on the table.

“Eggs! They're all we had left, but I'm sure they'll do fine. We have to eat them plain though. You two like scrambled, right?” Dirk fell into his chair, pulling his plate closer and smiling.

Todd stared at the plate.

He was fine. This was fine.

Breathe. Like the article said. Count backwards from fifty and just breathe. Fifty. Breath. Forty-nine. Breath.

This was fine. He could handle this. It was just, breakfast. Breakfast was fine.

Forty-eight.

He couldn't breathe.

“Todd?” Dirk asked, his voice distant. Todd blinked against the strong feeling rising in his chest, blocking off his airway.

He was still staring at the eggs.

Goddamn eggs.

“Todd? Are you okay?” Dirk reached forward, towards Todd’s wrist.

Todd pulled his hand back, nearly tipping out of the chair before he caught himself. He was gripping the wooden stool with a tight hold, his chest rising erratically.

It was only eggs. They were just eggs. Eggs weren't that bad.

Eggs felt very not okay.

Todd shook his head, mumbling incoherently. He managed to get a small apology out before the panic blocked off his speech too. Everything looked fuzzy.

“Todd? Hey, it’s okay. What’s wrong? Tell me what’s wrong.”

This wasn't fine.

He blinked, pushing the chair away from Dirk as his vision clouded.

“No no no don't tell- don't, I'm not.” A weird sound came out of his mouth. Don't tell him what to do. Just ask. Why couldn't they ask?

Why did it have to be eggs?

“Okay, I’m sorry. What– what happened?” Dirk had followed him, but was giving him space, watching carefully. Todd tried to take an unsuccessful breath, his chest starting to hurt as he grabbed onto the chair even tighter.

“It's okay it's fine. It's fine.” He closed his eyes, the lights too right. “I don't need help.”

He couldn't breathe. He couldn't _breathe._

“Okay, it’s fine. That’s, fine. But, um, it’s just. There seems to be, a lot of pain. And, I just– please, let me help.”

Todd blinked against whatever was clouding his vision, and everything came into sharp focus again.

Crying. He was crying.

“I don't want help. I don’t, I- Adrien don't.” Todd closed his eyes again, blocking out the angry swirling colors in his vision.

Shit.

“Todd, Adrien’s not here. You’re safe. It’s just us. You and me. And well, the others. But they can leave if you want. Can, maybe, would you like to sit down?” Dirk was trying to move the chair slowly, to get closer.

“Wait Wait don't-” A sob shook his body, and his body gave out to the panic. He was on the ground now, but he couldn't remember how he got there.

His shoulder hurt.

“Okay, whatever you want. Please, let me, do, something. Martin? I don’t–” The sound of boots on the floor filled the otherwise silent apartment.

“Pup, you okay?”

Todd cringed away, clenching his left hand. He thought it hurt, but maybe it didn't. He couldn't tell. His throat was burning.

This wasn't fine. This was worse.

“Don't. Don't. I'm sorry.” Now they were upset at him, and mad at him, probably. He'd ruined a perfectly good meal. He'd messed up everything again. Like usual.

“Todd, no, it’s, please, I don’t know how to help.” Dirk sounded like he had started crying. Martin sighed.

“Ain’t nothing to be sorry about, Pup. How can we help?”

“Bad word, Martin.” He heard Gripps’ voice.

“I'm sorry I'm sorry please- I didn't mean to. Dirk. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do that.” He grabbed his head, half expecting to feel blood on his face. All he came back with were tears.

“It’s okay. Whatever it is. I don’t care. It’s okay, really. Wait, where–” Todd could hear Martin walking away, muttering something on the other side of the room. Dirk let out a choppy sigh and scooted forward.

“Please, let me help.”

He could have sworn he heard Adrien in the back if his mind.

“I'm sorry. I let him help. I'm sorry. I broke it.” Todd had broken something, he had broken something important. He was sure it was of important, whatever it was. He was having trouble remembering.

“Okay. So, something broke. That’s fine. We can fix it. We can, I know we can. Together. Yeah?” Dirk was definitely crying now.

“I can't. I'm too messed- I, shit. Adrien. I'm sorry.”

His breath caught in his throat.

“He’s not here, he isn’t I swear. He’s not getting anywhere near you, never again. Please, it’s okay.”

Todd shook his head.

“I let him. I- it's my fault. It's always, I, I'm.” Todd hit the ground in frustration, unable to blink away the tears fast enough to clear his vision.

He wasn't fine.

He was very not okay.

“Todd, nothing that happened was your fault. It was terrible, but it wasn’t your fault. The things he said, the things he did, none of that is your fault. Just like you tell me, right?” Dirk was next to him, his knees just barely avoiding Todd’s leg. Todd's breathing was audible, even to himself.

“I, let, he asked me. He didn't. I let him. I let him. Oh god, I'm fucking awful.” Todd covered his head with his arms, his shoulder twitching in nonexistent pain.

“Ain’t your fault what happened Pup.” Gripps said, he was still on the other side of the room. “Ain’t no fault but that dumb god.” Todd heard Dirk shift slightly.

“It is, whatever happened, it’s his fault, not yours. It’s okay, whatever happened, it doesn’t matter. You’re safe, here and now. Please, it’s okay, Todd.” Dirk was whispering, unsure of how close was too close.

He needed… something.

“He just, he asked. He asked. I'm- I messed it up, again. Again. Because I'm so stupid that I broke myself.”

“I, no, you’re, not. I don’t know how to hel- I don’t know how make this better, please.” Dirk tried again.

“Everything _fucking_ hurts.”

Fuck Adrien.

“I know it does. But, it’s okay. It hurts less when you talk about it. Or, we could, we could let Gripps, or Martin, they could stay, and then we could talk. Whatever you want.” Dirk was shifting uncomfortably, scooting backwards slightly.

“I'm sorry.” His body shook with another sob, and he crawled down to rest his head on the carpet. His carpet. His apartment.

Home. With Dirk.

Who he'd betrayed.

“It’s, it’s okay, just– um, I’ll be right back, just– okay.” Dirk disappeared, the sound of his feet moving quickly away. Todd curled up tighter, blocking the stares of everyone else in the room. The whole room was silent.

There he was, on display. Naturally.

“No, Dirk, but–” There was an odd shuffle near him as Bart struggled with something before moving away. The click of the door was followed quickly by soft shuffling. Two sets of footsteps moved back towards Todd and something soft covered him.

“Is that okay?” Dirk asked, he had reappeared near Todd’s head. “I sent the others, well, everyone except for Gripps, and Ethan, who is unfortunately asleep. They’ve gone. I, I wasn’t sure what to do. So, blanket.”

Todd's crying became audible now.

“Dirk.” He didn't mean to. He hadn't meant to mess up. Everything was just getting so _badly,_ what else was he supposed to have done? It was all his fault.

“Everything is okay. Well, it’s not. But, I think it could be. Are you able to talk about it? Gripps, Gripps seems really concerned. You know, how he is.” Dirk tried for a laugh but it came out more as a cry. Todd heard Gripps shift off to the side.

“Least he can keep secrets.” Todd mumbled, grabbing a tight hold of Dirk's wrist. He needed something. He needed Dirk to know what happened. He needed him not to be angry.

He needed Dirk.

“He does? Well, that’s fantastic. You know me, terrible with secrets. It’s why they booted me out of the CIA, you know. Would, would it be easier for Gripps to talk, or is it something you want to try to say?”

“Both. Dirk, I can't- I don't, know, how I-” He pulled the blanket up to his nose. “Help.”

Help. Always help.

Just like with Adrien. He was pathetic.

“Not this time, Pup.” Gripps said quietly. Dirk tensed but carefully used his thumb to draw circles on Todd’s arm.

“Well, I guess, whenever you’re ready. There’s no rush, we have, all the time. I’ll be here.” Gripps made a noise in agreement. The sound of a crinkling wrapper filled the space. “Maybe, not right now?” Dirk hissed.

Todd laughed, the action making him feel like he was insane. Maybe he was.

“I let him, he hurt, it- Dirk. Help.” Todd pulled at the blanket tighter.

“I am more than happy to help. How? Whatever you need.” Dirk scooted closer, still drawing circles on Todd’s arm.

Todd grabbed onto Dirk's shoulder, pulling himself up with the blanket still wrapped around him. He wrapped his arms tightly around Dirk, afraid to let go. Afraid to lose him. It was the first real contact they'd had in nearly a month.

Everything wasn't fine. Everything was bad.

Dirk laughed lightly, wrapping his arms tightly around Todd, pulling him closer.

“There you are. I’ve missed you.” Dirk said into Todd’s neck. Todd was trembling, and Dirk's shoulder was already getting wet from him crying.

It wasn't fine. But it might be, eventually.

“I messed up, man. I really messed up. It's my fault I didn't, listen.” Todd didn't want to let go. Dirk pulled him tighter.

“You did nothing wrong. Nothing that happened is your fault. I promise. I bet Gripps told you the same thing right?”

Todd nodded.

“Well, see, he would know, he’s the smartest of us all. I mean, who do you think does our taxes? He’s a genius. If he said you did nothing wrong, then that’s what happened. You did nothing wrong.” Dirk laughed, drawing circles on Todd’s back.

“He kissed me.”

“I’m sorry that happened to you. But, it’s not your fault that he was a very annoying creep. It, really truly isn’t.” Dirk pulled him in tighter, bringing the blanket back up to Todd’s shoulders for the added warmth.

“I panicked after he, made me, hang up.” Todd mumbled into Dirk's neck, his stomach burning with something rotten. “I couldn't, I, and, he asked if I wanted help to. Stop.” He shook violently. “I let him. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry Dirk.”

“You have nothing to be sorry for. What happened was awful, but I don’t care about any of that, I care about you. And whether you’re safe. I’m sorry that you’ve been keeping this in. It’s okay.” Dirk pulled back to look at Todd, smiling lightly.

“I’m not going anywhere.”

“Please Dirk.” Todd lowered himself back onto the ground, still holding onto Dirk. His breathing still wasn't regulated, and, he felt dizzy. “My chest hurts.”

“I know. How can I fix that? Anything, Todd. Whatever you need.” Dirk held tightly to Todd’s hands.

Todd tugged at him, trying to get him to come down further.

“Don't leave me alone, man.”

“I’m not going anywhere.” Dirk twisted carefully, avoiding the chair and laying down, holding tight to Todd’s hands. Todd shuffled forward, until his forehead was resting on Dirk's chest. He mumbled quietly, his breaths just a little bit better.

“Tell Gripps thanks.”

“Anytime, Pup.” Gripps said quietly. There was a shuffling as Gripps walked towards the door. It clicked open but not before a rather annoyed squeak came from the bed as Gripps grabbed Ethan and dragged him out of the apartment.

“Just you and me, now.” Dirk said, smiling.

“Hey Dirk?”

“Yes, Todd?”

“Why aren't you mad?” Todd pulled closer into him. “I mean, I'm- I’m mad at myself.”

“There’s nothing to be mad at. Well, I mean, I’m mad at– well, you know who. But never you. It’s not your fault. You just had terrible things happen to you. It would be rather terrible of me to be mad at you.” Dirk freed one of his arms, and wrapped it over Todd, pulling him in closer.

“I hate that room. It's boring and white and small. And- Jesus Christ. How much was I bleeding?” Todd didn't want to know the answer.

He never wanted to think of this again.

“Enough that you gave the universe a heart attack. Which is quite impressive because it only had a heart for 36 hours. But that doesn’t matter. You’re here. You never have to go back there. Literally it dissolved into nothing, so we _literally_ can’t go back.” Dirk moved his hand to wipe the tears from Todd’s cheeks and smiled.

“I don't, think I like him. I think he's a, bad person, Dirk.”

Todd was almost certain of this. It was hard for him to tell.

“Friedkin or the universe? Because, I mean, both are debatable. Friedkin seems okay, just, very stupid. And Mona likes him, so– oh you meant– Did you mean–”

Todd nodded his head.

“Yeah, no, he’s the worst person I’ve never met. Well, kind of met. Sort of– it doesn’t matter.” Dirk pulled Todd closer. “But just because he’s a bad person doesn’t make you one. He’s the aresehole. You’re fantastic!”

Todd grabbed Dirk's shirt, the panic spiking back up in his stomach.

“He knows I'm alive.” Todd shut his eyes.

“He does, but it’s okay. You’ve got me. And The Rowdy Three. And… Bart. Who is, all kinds of terrifying. You’ve got loads of people! He’s just got himself. And well, the other one, but it’s fine! It’s– it’s not fine. But, it’ll be okay.” Todd laughed.

“You're not as good as our therapist.”

“Isn’t that literally why we pay her?” Dirk frowned, but smiled after a moment. “I just want you to be okay. And I want to help, or, assist as much as I can. As much as you want me to.”

“Dirk Gently. Assistant.” Todd glanced up at him. “I like it.”

“Course you do, it means you get a promotion.” Dirk laughed. “Is, are, you okay?”

“I don't know. Maybe, not now, but soon.” Todd frowned, pulling Dirk in tighter.

“Well, I’m here, for whenever you want to talk. We could do it now, or later, or never, or...we could pay the therapist more money and you could talk to her. Or, you could smash stuff. Amanda says that’s very claustrophobic.”

“Let's do all of that. But you should come with me.” Todd grinned. “We should smash Sara's office.”

“Maybe not Sara’s office. I like her, and would like to continue seeing her, she seems, cool. But, I would definitely love to come with you. Wherever you go. Even to the moon.” Dirk smiled.

“The moon and back. Sounds like a plan.”

“I’m sure Farah can afford that. How expensive could space travel be anyway? Oh, we could find um, what’s _her_ face? Is that right? Them! We could find– oh you know what I’m talking about.”

“You have UNIT on speed dial. Ask them.” Todd laughed quietly. Stupid aliens.

“Eh, the last time I called UNIT they asked if I wanted to do this thing with holes and paintings and war. Something about the queen. It was all very, odd. Maybe we’ll just wait, see what happens.” Dirk laughed lightly.

“Um, Todd?”

“Hm?” Todd glanced up again.

“I love the cuddling, you know I do, but, could we, maybe, move somewhere that isn’t the floor. I can’t feel my arm.” Todd hadn’t realized Dirk’s hand had gone slack. He pushed up, glancing at the bed, which was a mess from Ethan having been dragged out of it.

“Bed?”

“Sounds lovely. I’ll follow, just, arm.”

Getting onto the bed was the most domestic affair they'd had in weeks, a little over a month. Todd climbed onto it, pulling the sheets onto the mattress where they'd fallen off. Shaking out his arm, Dirk sighed.

Todd smiled.

“Thanks, Dirk.”

“Of course! Anything for you. Except right now, lean forward.” Dirk pushed Todd forward slightly as he sat next to him and then pulled him back, wrapping his arms around his stomach and resting his chin on his shoulder.

For once, there was only a minimal amount of pain in the area. It was nice.

“Complaints?” Dirk asked.

“No.” He lifted his hand slowly to run it through Dirk's hair. “I love you.”

“I love you, too. Always.”

There was a knocking at the door.

“So like, can I finish my food or, should we just go out?” Amanda called from the hallway. Dirk groaned, placing his forehead on Todd’s shoulder.

“Hey Dirk, wait.” Todd looked towards the door. “Go steal something, Amanda! We're busy!”

This was okay.

This was fine.

It actually, truly was. Or it would be, soon. It would be.

* * *

**The Fire Extinguisher, And How Angry People Can Get When You Steal One**

Todd wasn’t necessarily doing better. But the day had been going well so far. He had gotten up early from a restful night’s sleep and had even convinced Dirk to go to the donut shop with him before heading to the office. The outburst from over the weekend hadn’t been forgotten, but thankfully he hadn’t felt the need to talk about it. Dirk was there when he was ready. And Todd would talk to him.

Eventually.

Today’s task however, was slowly eating away his morning. Endless insurance forms were littering his desk and he knew he had to get them done or Farah would permanently kill him.

The bell to the front door chimed and he heard Farah’s boots as she marched into the office. He was about to look up to say hello when Farah dropped the used fire extinguisher on Todd’s desk and crossed her arms over her chest as he jumped backwards.

“We need to talk about the fire extinguisher.” She said, frowning down at him.

“Okay. Um, why is it on my desk?” He asked, glancing up at her.

“Well, that’s a funny story, see after you woke me up, at two in the morning, to drop off this random gift of a fire extinguisher the craziest thing happened. Can you maybe, guess what that was?” Todd glanced back down at his desk for a moment before shrugging.

“There was a fire?”

“There was. Good guess. Now, what I would love to know, is why you thought I would need a fire extinguisher, at two in the morning?” She leaned down, her hands flat on the desk, watching as Todd laughed.

“I just, well, you know, I thought, you don’t have one. And I thought that you could use one.”

“Randomly?”

“Yup.”

“At two in the morning?”

“Um, yeah.”

“Just, moments before an actual fire started in my apartment?”

“There was a fire in your apartment?!” Dirk had walked back in from the kitchen and was frowning over at them, looking first to Farah and then down at the fire extinguisher. Farah turned and gestured back at Todd.

“And where were you? You’re usually the one pulling me out of bed at insane hours of the morning.” She asked, watching Dirk as he walked closer.

“Hold on, I’m sorry, what happened?” Dirk asked, glancing back at Todd who was shaking his head.

“It was nothing, I just–”

“He showed up, at my apartment with a fire extinguisher at two in the morning. Said, ‘thought you should have this’, and then disappeared. About ten minutes later there was a fire. So, who wants to explain what’s going on?”

This was not how Todd had been imagining having this conversation. Everytime he thought about it, it had been later, after everything resolved and they could sit back and breathe. But he hadn’t been able to ignore the weird ringing in his head. It had started out small. Buying an extra box of bandaids for some unknown reason only to come home to find that Dirk had cut his hand. Or tossing the duct tape in the car near Farah’s gun and her using it to save the day later. It was just, random little things.

The fire extinguisher, had been less subtle.

He had woken in the middle of the night, alarm bells ringing in his head. A quick glance over at Dirk let Todd know that he was fine. Sneaking quietly out of the apartment, Todd followed the bells down the hall where he nicked the extinguisher from the wall and headed out into the night. Todd had realized he was on his way to Farah’s about halfway there and considered calling her, but he had left his phone. She hadn’t been happy to answer the door but he handed over the fire extinguisher and headed back, leaving her confused, but also leaving the bells.

He had almost thought it had been a weird dream. Up until a couple minutes ago.

Todd glanced up and watched as Dirk thought through what was going on. He was going to figure it out. Todd sighed.

Now was a good a time as any.

“It’s, I, I had, a hunch.” He frowned at the word. It was the wrong word, for him. Dirk got hunches, Todd got, he wasn’t sure, headaches? Death sirens? Something different than hunches.

“A hunch?” Farah frowned, glancing over at Dirk.

“Yeah, well, sort of, it’s, hunch is the wrong word. Something.” Todd pushed the chair back, wandering around the desk and slowly starting to pace in front of them. “It’s, I don’t know. It started after, ya know. The whole, dying, thing. And the universe said–”

“Like a _hunch_ hunch?” Dirk was frowning now, the emotion coming from his chest a mix of confusion and worry.

“Well, yeah. The universe said there would be, side effects, from the, not dying bit. And–”

“But you can't just _be_ holistic.” Dirk put down the candy bar he had been eating, and ducked past Todd to start pacing around the room. “If that's what you're saying. You just died, the universe would not be that cruel to you.” He stopped roughly in front of the the window, emotion filling his voice as he kept speaking. Sharing a look with Farah, Todd shrugged. How was he supposed to know what was going on? He was just as in the dark as the two of them.

An angry puff of air came from Dirk's direction.

“It's, really not that big of a deal, Dirk. I mean, maybe I'm just, I don't know-”

“Yes, I would very much like to hope that we are imagining this, but I doubt that Farah would have confronted you if we were.” Dirk swiveled around to face them, his face having fallen. “Whatever the universe has dragged you into, it's absolutely unnecessary.

Todd silently agreed, though he wasn't entirely sure that saying so would get Dirk to calm down. Dirk had always had his qualms with the universe, and this was exactly why Todd hadn't told anyone about the little bells in his head. Of course Dirk wouldn't like it, but like everything else, he would be powerless to fix whatever was the problem. The pull in the back of his mind had tried to get him to talk about it to Farah multiple times, but whenever he considered asking Dirk, the bells on a string would pull him away. Todd had formed his own personal theories because of that about… whatever it was, but he would have been content with leaving it all in the dark.

In hindsight, he probably could have worked this all out with the Rowdies before this.

“I didn't get dragged into anything. They, let me choose. It was either live with this or die, man. Dying kind of sucks.”

“Nothing is worse than this, Todd. Not death, or soul swapping, or Priest, or being on the bad end of a magic wand weilded by a crazy woman. I get dragged places whether I like it or not, the least I could get for my troubles is for you to have some sort of free will.” Dirk clenched his fists, taking a breath. “Apparently, punching the universe only once isn't enough.”

“Let's calm down, you two. We don't even really know what this is. It could be nothing.” Farah was crossing her arms, leaning against Dirk's desk. Her expression didn't match her tone though, and she was frowning at nothing in particular.

Todd diverted his gaze from Dirk, resting his eyes down on the fire extinguisher on his desk. He wasn't even sure if he was supposed to have taken it from the wall in the first place, though he supposed if anyone in the building actually cared, they would have called the landlord by now, which just so happened to be Farah.  After the last big case, which had involved a shrunken Hades and a really tired Persephone wielding a drunken penguin, Farah decided that the easiest thing to stop all the extra costs of repairing the building would just be to own it. It saved them a lot of grief whenever a case got too close to home. If anyone had called her about the missing fire extinguisher, she hadn't mentioned it, so Todd just assumed they hadn't.

And really, can it be considered missing if it goes from the building and into the hands of the actually owner?

He sighed.

“Yes, it could be nothing, except with our luck it most certainly is something. The universe wouldn't lie to Todd about that. It's not some sort of game.” Dirk gestured to Todd. “Todd, tell me, have you felt, compelled to do anything? Like, for example, bring a fire extinguisher up to Farah?”

“Uh…”

“Exactly.” Dirk was pacing back and forth, the worry in his chest having morphed into anger.

“Dirk, please listen okay?” Todd frowned. “It's, really not that bad. I'm alive, and-”

“It is! This, this isn’t living! This is a prison that you don’t deserve to be trapped in. I can’t, I just– I need some air.” Dirk turned on his heel and stormed out the front door. Farah called after him with no luck and turned to look at Todd.

“Aren’t you going after him?”

“He needs space. He’ll be fine.” Todd paused, thinking about it for a moment. “Yeah, he’ll be fine. I’m, I’m gonna head home. Sorry about the, fire, I guess.” Todd pushed his chair back to stand up, sighing as the papers scattered onto the floor when he moved his hand. Farah glared at him, but didn't say anything as he walked out. He could deal with it tomorrow; today just… didn't seem to be going well. Maybe he could watch a movie or something until Dirk came home.

Except… that's not what he felt like doing. The persistent little tug in the back of his mind had returned, and he wasn't sure where it was leading him. It definitely wasn't his apartment. Checking his watch, Todd sighed. It wasn’t even noon yet and he could feel the bells pulling him towards, something. Goddamn universe.

Todd set off down the sidewalk, pulling out his headphones to try and drown out the hunch with music. It wasn't the brightest idea; even in theory it didn't work. It made him feel better, though. Maybe wherever he was going would have music. Todd let himself be pulled along on the thin string of the universe for a few blocks, bobbing his head to the music and ignoring the fact that he didn't know what was happening. When he finally looked up from the playlist, he realized he was at the park, about a block from the Ridgeley.

And Dirk was sitting on the bench.

Todd slowly took out his headphones, frowning as the bells in his head pushed him forward. Or were they dragging him back? Honestly, Todd had trouble telling which was which at the best of times. Talk about cryptic.

It would be fine. Probably.

“Dirk?” Todd called out to him quietly, not missing the way his shoulders were rising erratically with his breaths. Dirk jumped slightly, turning to look at Todd before sighing and turning back.

“Let me guess, _hunch_?” He grumbled not looking up. Todd shrugged, shoving his phone roughly into his pocket.

“I, guess? I just sort of, walked. And now I'm here. And so are you, so.” His expression softened. “Are, do you, need help? Or company?”

“Do _I_ need help? That’s, I don’t even know what that is, but it’s just. Help. No, I’m– this isn’t about me. Are you, are you okay?” Dirk turned, looking up at Todd. His eyes were red and his cheeks just slightly puffy.

Todd frowned.

“I'm-” He wasn't actually sure what he was. “I'm fine man. But, you're like, crying. Can I help at all?” His expression softened. “Please, man?”

Dirk sighed and turned away.

“I don’t know. I just. This, thing, is awful, and I never wanted you to have to- you shouldn’t have to deal with it too. Not with, not with everything else.” Dirk was looking down at his hands as he slowly picked at his nails. The bells in his head drove Todd forward, urging him to continue the conversation.

“I was asked if I wanted this. It's either this or I would've had to leave you.” Todd went to touch Dirk, to comfort him, but decided against it. “You're stuck with me.”

Dirk laughed lightly glancing slightly over his shoulder.

“That’s usually my line.” He mumbled. Todd smiled, and with a moment's hesitation, bumped lightly against him.

“It's a holistic line. Now we both get to use it.” Dirk took a deep breath and stared out at the trees across the park.

“So, the universe asked this time, huh?” he didn't sound annoyed, more curious. Todd smiled, and pressed on with the encouragement.

“Yeah. They were all like, weird about it. I think someone might have yelled at them about all this Holistic stuff.” Todd smirked, watching how Dirk went red. “Was it you?”

“Todd, I have never yelled at anyone in my life.” He laughed lightly, shrugging his shoulders. “But it’s possible, that I might have, suggested that they were less than kind.”

“You know, they also said that they were asking so they wouldn't get hit.” Todd's chest warmed for a second time as he watched Dirk's smile widen. Dirk was the only one he felt truly comfortable around right now.

“Well, I definitely did that. As did Martin. And you, I’m just not sure you quite remember it.” Dirk’s smile softened slightly. The smile slowly faded from Todd's face, the image of blood etched into his retinas. His blood. On Dirk. A shiver ran down his spine as he pulled his jacket closer, and Dirk's eyes widened.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you, remember. I- I’m sorry.” Dirk looked back down at his hands, trying to keep his heart rate even.

Todd shook his head.

“It's, not your fault.” He mumbled, glancing over at Dirk. “Can't pretend it just, didn't happen. I, already tried that.”

And it had ended in disaster.

“I know, but I still feel awful about springing it on you. Of all people I should know how, unfun, sudden flashbacks are. I’m just, I’m sorry you’re in pain.” Dirk flipped his hand over on his leg, letting it sit there.

“It's- I was actually thinking about us. I, like, bled all over you.” Todd gave a bitter laugh, distant panic arising from his stomach.

It was fine.

“Adrien got a kick out of that.”

“Of course he did. That’s just– he’s insane. And I hate him, very much.” Dirk said, trying to push calming emotions towards Todd. Todd took a deep breath. He was fine. He wasn't going to start shaking, or be pulled into an unwanted memory. He had Dirk here.

“Yeah. I guess. But like, most of that stuff was sort of justified, so. It's cool.” Todd turned suddenly as Dirk's emotions took a sharp right, flaring into anger, and Todd cringed for a moment in instinct.

“Hold on, I’m sorry, what?” Dirk turned, his voice was surprisingly even for the amount of anger coming from his chest. Todd held his hand up to his own chest, Dirk's anger only increasing his own anxiety.

“Nothing. It's- it's nothing. It's fine.” Todd hunched forward, staring at his feet. “It's, chill.”

“Todd. I love you, but that’s not fine. Nothing that, lunatic did was justified. Nothing. You didn’t deserve anything that happened to you. None of it was your fault. Please tell me you know that.”

“Look, Dirk.” Todd turned to him, trying his best to reason with him and make the anger go down. “I, knew the consequences of, not listening. But, I did it anyway! I would've been fine if I'd, listened to him. This is, it's… it's… you're not accepting that answer, are you?”

“No, not at all. Todd, I– you, okay.” Dirk turned, wrapping his leg under him to face Todd on the bench. “Look, you did absolutely nothing wrong. You didn’t want to listen. And that’s completely acceptable. It’s sane. What he called ‘consequences’ were not that, a consequence is something simple. What he did, was, unacceptable. So you didn’t listen, do you really think you deserved the pain he put you through?”

Todd wasn't sure if either him or Dirk wanted to know that answer.

“Dude, he, it was pretty clear I'd, get hurt if I called you. And I did it to piss Ken off. And you know what? Now I can't even look at my hand because all I can think about, is, is, the sound of like, every single bone breaking! My shoulder, looks like I survived a vampire attack! I limp in the mornings! This is my fault, man!” Todd took a breath, his face heating up as tears threatened to spill over. “And then again the next day! I know what happens when I _don't_ listen to people! I do it anyway, because, I suck, man!”

Todd was breathing heavily, his chest tight and his stomach in knots.

“No you don’t. Todd, you’re spectacular. I know you feel like everything is your fault. That maybe if you had listened better it would have hurt less. That you could have been spared all the pain if you had just done what you were told. But, giving up, is worse. You, tried to fight back. You held on to that little part that makes you you. Even when– even when he told you you were wrong. And that’s, spectacular.”

Todd frowned at Dirk, the anger coming from his direction significantly less. His shoulders relaxed, listening to him talk.

“How would you, even know that? You weren't there.” Todd looked away for a moment.

“I was there for almost ten years. I assume most psychopaths follow the same rules.” Dirk said quietly. “Gods, mortals, aliens, it doesn’t matter. Anger and hate, and manipulation all wear similar masks. And that mask is usually mirrored to make you think that somehow, it’s all your fault.” Todd swore under his breath; he'd completely forgotten about Priest. Todd blanched at the idea of spending even another day with Adrien, much less the better part of a decade.

“I'm… sorry. I could never, be there, with him, for that long.” Todd turned his body away. “Sorry.”

“Hey, no, I didn’t, I didn’t bring up Blackwing to make you feel bad. I brought it up because. I may not know exactly what you’re feeling, and I may not know exactly what happened. But I’m here, and I want to help. I do. And it wouldn’t have mattered how long you were there. Whether it was two days or two years. You would have still come back to me. I know it. You’re so much braver than me.” Dirk scooted forward slowly. Todd didn't turn back to him.

“Yeah. You kind of missed the part where Adrien-” Todd paused, something uncomfortable rising in his chest as he blinked away at a memory eating at his brain. Collapsed next to the bed, having a panic attack as Adrien traced the scars on his shoulder.

Asking if he wanted _help_.

For a moment, his breathing sped up, and he could have sworn he was back in that room.

“I didn’t miss it. I, can guess, what happened. I am a detective after all. Plus, you mentioned it over the weekend, I just didn’t want to bring it up. Because I did such a good job of not bringing this up.” Dirk sighed. “What happened, was, invasive, and unacceptable. I am so sorry you had that happen to you. But it’s not your fault.”

Todd closed his eyes, trying to regulate his breathing. He was fine. He could talk about this.

He was fine.

A shudder ran through his body.

“I don't, know, what happened.” Todd's voice was uneven, but hey, he wasn't crying, so that was progress. “I- He was, I was, like. Terrified. And he just, asked if I wanted, help. Fuck. I let him. Shit.” Todd grabbed at his chest, lowering his head. He was fine. Everything was alright.

He promised himself he wouldn't have a panic attack today.

“You didn’t let him do anything. You were hurt, and scared, and probably oxygen starved. That’s not letting him do anything, that’s being trapped in a horrible situation. _He_ abused his position. _He_ took advantage. And that is never okay. Never. I just, I don’t know how to make it better.” Dirk had leaned backwards, trying to give Todd space.

“I don't, know why I let any of this shit happen. I never should have, we just, should have bailed on the damn alcohol.” Todd's hands were shaking, and he reached blindly out for Dirk. Dirk caught his hand, carefully drawing small circles along his palm.

“If we use that logic we’d never do anything. What happened was a shitty series of events that led to an outcome. What do you think would have happened if I hadn’t thrown him out of the agency? If Vogel hadn’t told me to tell the truth? I can assume we wouldn’t have taken the case but he would have worked all of that out in the office. I can’t even begin to imagine what would have happened.” Dirk pulled lightly on Todd’s arm, trying to get him to turn around.

Todd realized he was finally crying.

“He's not getting, anywhere near you.” Todd opened his eyes. “I'll- do, something.”

“I know you will. But it’s okay, if you can’t. I’ll be there to help. We’re stronger together.” Dirk said, catching Todd’s other hand and sighing. “You’re far braver than me.”

Todd let Dirk pull him in, and rested his head on Dirk's shoulder as he held tightly onto him, afraid to let go, afraid to lose him.

As always.

“I'm not.” Todd whispered, his breathing strange but manageable. “How the hell can I be?”

Dirk wasn't there to see how he'd cowered when Adrien started growling at him.

“I know you remember this summer. How could you not. The whole thing with, with Priest. I saw him, and I couldn’t move, I couldn’t think. Even with you right there I couldn’t do anything. You, you got shot, and I just knew that it was my fault. It wasn’t, Priest is a psychopath. It’s very much his fault. But, Vogel told me what happened. In the room. You saved him. You did what I wouldn’t have been able to do. What I wasn’t able to do. You might feel, broken, and damaged, but you’re not. I promise.” Dirk rested his head on Todd’s and drew small circles onto his back.

The bells were ringing in Todd's head again, albeit softer, and Todd couldn't for the life of him figure out what they were trying to say. Like he didn't have everything he needed yet. It was frustrating. He felt Dirk shift slightly as the bells started ringing, and Todd made a mental note to flip off the universe later.

At least it asked.

“Your hunches seem softer than mine.” Dirk mumbled softly, a smile pulling at his lips. Todd laughed lightly, pulling him in tighter.

“You should hear them when they get loud.” He ran his hand over the fabric of Dirk's shirt. This was okay. He was going to be okay.

“I’m sure I’ll feel it eventually.” The circles stopped for a moment. “So, what, exactly, are they for?”

Todd frowned.

“I don't know. They just… help. Not me, but like everyone else.”

Dirk snorted lightly, as he started tracing circles again.

“I’m pretty sure I told you the exact same thing. The universe really knows how to make helpful powers doesn’t it. But like, help you do what? I know the fire extinguisher. What else have you been doing that I haven’t noticed?” Todd smiled, pulling away lightly to look Dirk in the face.

“Like, just, small stuff. Getting extra bandages before you fall, or giving Farah some tape and it ends up, magically being what she needs to stop something from exploding.” Todd bit his lip. “Plus, like, the whole hole in wall thing. That happened.” Dirk frowned.

“Which hole in the wall? The new one?”

“Yeah.” Todd couldn't help but smile. “Please tell me you remember that.”

“I, don’t think I do. When did the shark go off? Was I there?” Dirk was frowning now as he tried to remember. Todd laughed again, leaning against Dirk's chest.

“I like, got this idea, or hunch or whatever, to knock your tea on the ground. So, I did? And you had your headphones on so you, couldn't really hear me. And then…” The image from about a week prior made Todd smile even wider. “The cat got scared by the TV, and, sort or exploded where you were sitting before I spilled it. Do you seriously not remember?”

“ _You_ knocked my tea onto the floor? That was you?!” Dirk was still frowning. Todd exhaled, and turned on his back to stare up at the sky.

“Sorry? Sorry. I think?”

“I blamed the cat for like a week. I stopped giving her catnip. Todd, why, no, I know why. Cause that’s what the universe said.” He laughed, wrapping his arms around Todd’s middle and resting his chin on his head. “I guess I was right.”

“Right?” Todd glanced up, anxiety rolling in his stomach.

“You’re a holistic guard dog. We’re going to have to change your nickname.” Dirk laughed lightly, entwining his fingers with Todd’s. Todd opened his mouth to protest, smiling.

“No way we're calling me that. There are, so many cooler names.” He held Dirk's hand tightly in his own, holding him close.

“Detective, actress, assassin, guard dog. I think it flows wonderfully.” Dirk smiled, using his thumb to draw circles against Todd’s hand.

“I hate you. You suck, Dirk.”

“You wound me, truly.” Dirk deadpanned. “I hope your sister isn’t this silly when she– um. Nothing.” Dirk had tensed rather quickly.

“Dirk?” Todd sat up, looking around the park for anything that could have made Dirk react like that. There had to be something, unless…

Oh.

“No, it’s nothing. It’s totally and completely nothing. At all. So, the fire extinguisher. Where, where did you–”

“Dude.” Todd stopped his, frowning. Not only had be gotten up for no reason, but now Dirk was hiding something from him. “What's happening? Is Amanda okay?” He couldn't let Adrien get Amanda, and he knew the panic was leaking into his voice.

“Oh you are far more worried about this. I’m sorry. No, it’s nothing! Really! She just, she said she wanted to tell you, but I mean with everything it’s just, ya know, rather, difficult to find a good time to, talk.”

“Talk?” Todd took a breath, trying to stay what could be described as calm, even if that was false. “About what!? What's happening? Is she leaving somewhere? I don't think, that with Adrien out there we should…” He narrowed his eyes at Dirk's expression. “What?”

“It is, absolutely nothing like that. Amanda is not going anywhere. I promise. In fact, she’s probably going to be sticking around forever, so there’s literally nothing to worry about.” Dirk was smiling but it looked forced. Todd paused for a moment.

“Forever? Why?”

“It’s just, that, she said she’d hit me if I told you before she got the chance, and she’s rather terrifying so I mean–”

“Dirk.” Todd lowered his voice. “Please tell me?”

He needed to know; his anxiety wouldn't calm until he did.

“She, is, going to have Martin, bite her.” Dirk squinted, leaning back slightly.

“ _What_!?”

“See, this is why she wanted to tell you, she’s much better with, arguing. It’s okay! Really! I mean! She’s an adult, and it’s all good. Right?”

Todd raised his eyebrows.

“I just thought, she'd like, I don't know.” Todd frowned. “Kinda thought she'd choose Vogel, actually.”

“Pardon?”

The look on Dirk's face was priceless.

“I'm not like, stupid. Or well, I am, but I had a lot of time to think with- you know.” Dirk nodded. “Isn't she closer to Vogel? Martin is like, eight feet tall or something as a wolf. Maybe smaller. Vogel's way less intimidating.”

“I think that has something to do with age. You, you’re okay with this?” Dirk frowned.

“I haven't slept all weekend.” Was Todd's only response.

He wanted to be mad, sure. He wanted to be pissed, and go up to Martin and tell him to be careful. But really, he knew that besides Amanda being able to take care of herself, Martin and all the others would fight against Blackwing for her. He couldn't muster the energy, or the logic, to be angry.

Maybe later.

“You know, I don’t think she anticipated that response. You should catch her by surprise, see what happens. Can I watch? Please let me watch. Screw it, I’m bringing popcorn.” Dirk was smiling and bouncing slightly in his spot. Todd smiled, softly.

“I think she wants me to be mad.” Todd shook as a breeze blew by. “But like, I'm way too tired to actually do that. In every way.”

Dirk sighed, wrapping his arms around Todd and pulling him closer.

“I’m sure she does, but she’ll just have to settle for a loving brother who is more than okay with her choices.” Dirk laughed.

“Sounds like a bad deal. She should get a refund.”

“I don’t know, I quite like her brother. He’s pretty cool. Super smart, and loving, and has far too many– oh! I have an idea!” Dirk smiled down at him.

Todd pushed up to look at him, the expression on Dirk's face lighting up even more with each passing moment. There was an evil glint in his eyes, and Todd was certain that this was going to lead to something… probably brilliant, actually.

“Yeah?”

“First, we should swing into that shop with the popcorn. And then second, we should go next door to the popcorn shop, which as you know, because you are so amazingly clever, is a pet shop.” Dirk raised and eyebrow as he smiled.

Oh.

_Oh._

“Oh, shit.” Todd spoke quietly, a slow smile spreading across his face. “We aren't, are we?”

“I mean, it’s only fair.” Dirk hopped up and held out his hand. Taking it, Todd let himself be pulled upright with no anxiety whatsoever; Dirk was the only one who could do that.

He grinned.

“This is bad.”

“Then let’s be bad.” Dirk smiled, pulling him back down the path towards the street and the pet store. He wondered if this was the bad idea that would finally get them killed.

The bells didn’t seem to think so.

* * *

**Dancing in the moonlight**

Todd wasn't sure whether to laugh or to cry when he saw what Gripps had brought to their full moon party, but he was currently leaning towards both. He was staring in the mirror, staring at a bright, obnoxious, and even _sparkly_ shirt that had the words “Spooky Wolf Club” on the front in big bubble letters. The back even had a number, like a typical jersey, and had his nickname written above them.

If anything was worse than wearing a shirt with the name “Pup” on it, he wasn't sure he wanted to ever get into that situation.

Gripps had brought shirts for everyone, even the ones who weren't part of the pack. Dirk's had the word “Brit” written on the back, packed with extra sparkles and a familiar smiley faced pin attached to it. Amanda's had her usual name that the other Rowdies called her, Drummer, and had a drawing of a crude drum set drawn in sharpie on it. Even Bart, Ethan, and Friedkin had gotten one, although Friedkin's was admittedly the most unflattering. His shirt just said “Crazy Guy”, and Todd suspected that Martin may have had something to do with it. Martin just didn't like the guy, and for valid reasons.

Farah's shirt had her actual name on it.

Todd patted his shirt down, trying to get a feel for the material it was made out of. It was smooth, much unlike that of flannel, and Todd was thankful. He wasn't sure he could deal with any flannel right now. It was admittedly sharing a color with a specific torn up flannel in the trash, but it was okay, honestly.

He was fine.

Todd smiled as he felt the presence of Dirk behind him, uncertainty coming from his direction as he debated on whether he was allowed to get any closer right now. Todd smiled, cocking his head as he turned to face him. Behind Dirk and outside in the setting sun, Todd could see all of the others messing about with the food that Farah had brought. He put his hands in his pockets.

“Don't you want to go like, play with Vogel or something?” Todd gave a small, half hearted smile. Dirk was silhouetted in the low sunlight, looking like he was emerging from the actual sun itself.

He hated him. He loved him, but damn, that just wasn't fair.

“There’ll be plenty of time for that later. I’d much rather hang out with you. Unless, you’d rather be alone? I can go, if, if you want.” Dirk was smiling, even as his words picked up with anxiety.

“No!” Todd couldn't be alone. “No man, it's. It's cool. I, like it when you're here.”

He loved it.

“I like it when I’m here too. It’s much better than being elsewhere.” Dirk laughed lightly as he he leaned backwards against the couch. “Besides, if I wasn’t here, who would tell you that you look absolutely smashing in that shirt?”

Todd laughed, shaking his head. He almost could have gone red.

“This, isn't really my color. But it's nice. It like, I don't know. Like I'm part of the whole pack dynamic.” Todd glanced out the door again, watching them all carefully. They looked happier than every, Amanda climbing onto Cross’ shoulders as Vogel climbed onto Martin's, ready for a war. Beast was jumping alongside, screaming and smiling and egging them on.

It was peaceful. He finally felt like he was home. Away from all of the bad stuff that'd happened.

“Of course you’re part of the pack. You’re like, my favorite part.” Dirk smiled, following Todd’s gaze towards the others.

“Yeah. I guess.” Todd mumbled to himself, shivering slightly at the breeze outside. He wasn't getting warm just yet; that would come after the sun had fully set. For now, he had to suffer though the cold, and the shirts were short sleeved.

“Why guess? I mean, of course we don’t have to talk about it, if you don’t want to. But, well, why guess?” Dirk asked, glancing back, his eyebrows knitted together thoughtfully. Todd shook his head; it really wasn't anything important.

“It's, stupid man. Really.”

Todd just wasn't sure if he actually deserved to be part of this. Not _this_. This was something else, something safe.

Honestly though, he didn't deserve Dirk either, and here he was.

Dirk laughed lightly and flipped his hand over, revealing his palm and holding it slightly in front of him.

“Nothing you say is stupid. I promise. Well, except for the comment you made about me and the color green. I look fantastic in every color, thank you very much. But, if you don’t want to talk about it, that’s more than fine too.” He smiled, his hand still hovering above his leg slightly.

“It's, just, something that, someone said to me. I'm fine.” Todd swiped down to take Dirk's hand, holding up to his own chest. His heartbeat was steady. “I'm okay, man.”

“Alright. I believe you.” Dirk smiled, squeezing Todd’s hand lightly. Todd reached up, kissing him lightly on the cheek. Dirk squeaked, smiling wider at him.

“So, these shirts.” Todd leaned back to get a better look at Dirk's, looking like a walking disco ball. “They're, something.”

“They’re fantastic, and you know it. I mean, they sparkle!” Dirk ran his hand over the sequins on the front of his own matching shirt. “What’s better than clothing that sparkles?”

“Ones that don't?” Todd sighed, leaning his head on Dirk's shoulder. “You know, I don't actually doubt the fact that Gripps made these himself. He's like, a pretty weird guy to talk to. Cool, I guess.” Gripps was a lot nicer to Todd ever since he'd agreed to keep his secret, and was almost enjoyable to be around. The more he got to know the Rowdies, the stranger they became. “I think he speaks like, other shit.”

“He definitely made the shirts. He let me do some of the bedazzling and– oh, bad news about the couch pillows. If you hate the shirts, we should probably go to the store tomorrow for some new, couch. But, yes, Gripps speaks Romanian, fluently. It’s actually pretty fun chatting back and forth with him, it’s been a while for me.” Dirk smiled, looking down at Todd.

Todd pulled back slightly to stare up at him.

“Didn't you say like, you forgot how to speak it? Or something?” Todd frowned; Dirk had definitely lamented about that for a few nights after Todd had found out where Dirk actually came from after one of their previous cases. Dirk had insisted he didn’t know how to speak it anymore, and in fact had been adamantly blaming Blackwing for it.

There was a lot of hugging that weekend.

“I had. Almost completely. But Gripps found out somehow and started speaking it at me, and so I’ve been using that app thing on the phone, because he refuses to speak English when it’s just the two of us. So. Surprise! I’m relearning Romanian!” Dirk laughed lightly, as he tried to slowly pull Todd back. He relented, leaning back into Dirk.

“That's, actually kind of like, sweet of him? I think the Rowdies are actually starting to grow on me.” Todd shook his head; it was a miracle. They were nearly tolerable.

“They’ve been hanging round for more than half a year, I hope they’re growing on you.”

“Has he said how he speaks Romanian? I mean, like, is there a reason, or?” Todd trailed off; he knew nearly nothing about where the Rowdies came from, much less how or why they did most of what they did. Martin was the biggest mystery of them all, and Vogel and Amanda were the clearest. Cross and Gripps were stuck in a clouded middle, leaning to both sides.

“He mentioned that his grandmother taught him, but then he got rather sad, so I didn’t ask again.” Dirk glanced back out the window. “I doubt any of us had terribly happy childhoods.”

“Yeah.” Todd embraced Dirk, wrapping him in a tight hug as he followed Dirk's gaze out of the window. “But you know, it did turn out okay. They have each other. We, we do too. Mona has Friedkin, which is just weird. And Bart has… Ethan. I hope he's okay.”

Ethan only ever seemed partly okay, to tell the truth.

“Oh, Ethan is fine. I overheard him and Bart talking. I think he likes what they do more than they do. We might want to watch him, you never know, he could be an alien.” Dirk laughed, before leaning his head back down. “And yes, it has turned out rather happily, hasn’t it? It took a while, but, this is more than okay.”

“If Ethan turns out to be another Doctor situation, I'm bailing.” Todd pulled him tighter, afraid to let go. “Riggins can kiss my ass. You're happy and I get to like, watch you be. That's pretty cool.”

“It is indeed.” Dirk nodded, before he frowned and pushed Todd away slightly. “Did the Doctor do something to you, you seem very something towards her. She seemed rather lovely, though the bum bag is a bit much. It doesn’t go with her shoes at all.”

“Dude, seriously?” Todd stared at him. Dirk couldn't be this dense. “She's literally hit on both you and my sister. Multiple times. She's trying to beat out that weird guy in Torchwood. I hate those cases.”

“Oh I see what this is. You’re jealous.” Dirk smiled, crossing his arms. “Maybe I should give Jack a ring, I’m sure he knows a thing or two about taking down gods. Have to expend all the resources right?”

Todd faltered. Jack was a nice guy, a really nice guy. He was rather charming, actually, and way better than Todd. He wouldn't stop Dirk if he did, but he was almost scared that if Dirk looked at the two of them, he'd choose Jack instead.

He'd never been this self conscious before.

“It- no man, I'm, sure he has things to do.” Todd shifted on his feet.

“Todd, I’m joking. I’m sorry if that upset you.” Dirk’s smile softened. “You have nothing to worry about, I promise. Besides, Jack is like three hundred or something like that, I don’t go for older men.”

“Huh. Explains why you like me.”

He was fine. Todd was fine. _Dirk_ was fine.

He didn't mess up. He didn't.

“Sorry.” Todd mumbled, shrugging.

“Darling. I love you for so many other reasons. You’re smart, and kind, and loving, and you’re not afraid to tell me to shut up, and you’re a fantastic listener, and you’re always there. There are more reason than stars. You know that right? I can tell you more, if you need. I can tell you everyday, if you’d like.” Dirk was still smiling, holding lightly onto Todd’s hands.

Todd leaned into him, wrapping his arms around him and letting himself melt. Just for a second. Everything could be okay for a moment.

“I love you.” His speech was muffled, burying his head in Dirk's neck.

“And I love you, more than I can articulate. But I will try, everyday.” Dirk hugged back, pulling Todd in tighter. Another breeze came in through the open door, and it sent a chill up Todd's spine. He rolled his head back to look at Dirk.

“Do you, want to go outside?” The group was loud, laughing with one another. “There's like, stuff happening.”

“I want to go wherever you go. If you want to go outside, we can go outside.” Dirk smiled, glancing out at the others.

“Outside.” Todd frowned. “But, maybe, talk to the Rowdies. They're kind of loud, and…” He trailed off, not finishing his thought.

“You don’t need to worry about that. Martin has got it covered.” Dirk said, untangling himself from Todd and holding his hand as they headed towards the door. Martin glanced up towards them and gave a sharp whistle, quieting the group but not distracting from their activities. Todd nodded at him, almost going up to thank him. He saw Gripps grab Beast's hand, keeping her from going to tackle Dirk.

Martin accommodating for him. The world was strange.

Todd glanced longingly at the table, which was lined with food that Farah had bought. Predictably, Cross and Gripps had formed their own corner of snacks, consisting of bottles of Chocolate syrup, actually maple syrup, and boxes of watermelon PopTarts. Todd smiled.

“Something to eat? Besides-” He paused. “Actually, I think I'm grabbing a poptart.” In the background, he heard Gripps cheer.

“You wound me. Truly.” Dirk deadpanned as he grabbed a small spiral sandwich. “There’s so many other options that aren’t, that. But, I guess it’s alright.” He dramatically threw his head back as he sighed.

“I don't know, man. They're, growing on me.” More importantly, eating them reminded Todd that he was really here. He wanted that. He _needed_ that. “They're not that bad.”

“Whatever keeps you sane.” Dirk smiled at him, dragging him towards the fire that the others had set up. Dirk threw a quick glance at Amanda and then back at Todd. “Did you bring it?”

Todd ran his hand over the distinct lump in his pocket, indicating the gift he had bought.

“Yup. She's going to hate me.”

“Impossible. She loves you. But you might get hit in the face. It’s a possibility. One that I have prepared for and I think my reflexes are fast enough to pull you out of the way.” Dirk smiled as they sat down. Todd shuddered, thinking of it and instinctively reaching for his shoulder.

He was going to be fine.

“Let's maybe, I mean, she knows that…” Todd frowned. “Right?”

“Did you talk to her about it?” Dirk asked, frowning slightly.

“I mean, I tried, but she's like, kind of busy. Maybe one of the Rowdies could.” Todd glanced over at Amanda, who was trying to show Cross how to properly weave the flowers growing into a crown. Vogel had taught her.

“Worry not. I’ll keep you safe. I promise.” Dirk said softly, smiling. Todd looked up, contemplating, and then placed another small kiss on his cheek.

“Thanks.”

He heard Amanda and Cross cheering in the background, and more likely than not, Farah was rolling her eyes. She was currently talking to Tina over a video chat, gossipping about the pack and scolding Tina for letting Scott Boreton do dangerous things. It was a usual night for her.

“Anything for you.” Dirk smiled glancing up and over Todd’s shoulder. Amanda had broken off from the group and was walking over.

“Hey guys.” She said happily. “On your right.” She carefully hopped over the log and sat next to Todd, avoiding getting too close. “Mind if I sit?”

“Sure sis. You can, sit. I mean-” Todd frowned. “Is, anything wrong?”

“Nope! Not unless I missed something. Did I? Should I sit further back?” She asked, frowning at Dirk who was laughing lightly and watching the fire.

Dammit. What had Dirk told her?

“No! It's fine. You know. It's just, kind of cold.” It was true. The sun hadn't set yet, and he was still shivering slightly. The warmth couldn't set in soon enough. Amanda smiled and turned slightly, facing him.

“Cool, did you want like a jacket or something? I’m sure we could find something.” She was still smiling at him.

“Uh…” He glanced at Dirk. He hadn't talked much to Amanda since… well, since the whole thing with Adrien, and he was still feeling awkward. He would be fine, just as soon as he got back into the swing of things.

He would be fine.

“I’ll go find a blanket. You two, chat, or don’t, do, things. Bye.” Dirk hopped up and bounded towards the Rowdies, waving at Beast, and leaving Todd and Amanda on the log. Amanda was smiling, holding her hands in her lap, trying to keep them still. Todd had rarely seen her in this form.

“Uh, so. Dirk's, getting a blanket.” He nodded. “Thanks?” He wasn't sure how to proceed; this conversation could only end up in one place.

“So, I have some, not bad, but unfortunate news.” Amanda said, her smile didn’t match the sentence.

“Yeah.” Todd exhaled, staring into the fire before looking back at her. “You look like you're in pain.”

“Well, that’s because I’d like to hit you, but I’m not going to, because that would be mean. And like, super uncool. So, I’ll hit something else later, it’ll be fine. But that’s not it.” She was smirking now, and Todd bounced his leg nervously as he watched her grin grow.

Yeah, someone had definitely talked with her about him.

“Yeah?” Todd felt the gift in his pocket, his heart hammering. “Is it something cool?”

“It is, very much so, but you know that. Right?” She raised an eyebrow, still smiling.

“I…” Todd shook his head slowly as he spoke. He didn't have an answer.

He was going to be fine.

He was going to be.

“Dude, it’s chill. I know that you know. Dirk told me a couple days ago. I also know that I’m getting a present.” She smiled widely, holding out a hand, careful to avoid getting too close. Todd took a breath before pulling the gift out of his pocket, plastering a forced smile onto his face until it no longer felt fake, and put the gift in her palm.

“Happy birthday, sis.”

In Amanda's hand was a dog bone squeaky toy.

“Thanks bro.” She smiled down at the toy, giving it a soft squeak. “I love it!” Todd nodded, deflating as he got more comfortable. This was okay.

“If I have to be tortured with these things, so do you.” He grinned softly at her, watching her examine the toy. She had gotten him so many, it was nice to turn the joke around on her.

“I would expect nothing less! In all honesty, I was kind of expecting like a collar or something, but this is good too! It’s fantastic!” She placed her hands back in her lap and smiled up at him. “How about you? You doing okay?”

Todd noticed Dirk hanging in the back, talking lowly with Martin and Ethan. The blanket was nowhere yet to be found.

“Yeah, I'm chill. I-” He looked up at her. “Did someone like, talk to you? Or…” He sure as hell hadn't.

“Nope, Gripps and Dirk wouldn’t budge. But, you’re my brother, and I’m not stupid. I can tell something is bugging you. And I’ve noticed the touching thing with Dirk. I just want to make sure you’re okay.” She tilted her head to the side and smiled. Todd laughed softly.

“It's… going, actually, somewhere. I'm not sure okay, but, I'm something.” He turned to the fire, avoiding her eyes. “A lot of stuff happened. It's just like, a thing. I'll be fine.”

Soon. He just needed time.

“And thanks.”

“For what?”

“For not like, pressing it.” Todd had finally relaxed his shoulders, ignoring the fact that he was now acutely aware of the scars right under the fabric of his shirt. He was okay, safe.

“Dude, of course. If you don’t want to talk about it, it’s cool. I just want you to know I’m here. And I’ll listen if you need. Just, please don’t leave, ya know?” She had gotten quiet, holding a little tighter to the squeaky toy. Todd hesitated for a moment, his chest reacting wildly, and then reached out to pat her on the shoulder. Dirk was really the only one he could let fully embrace him right now.

“I won't. And even if I do, the universe, got kind of mad the first time. So I think I'll be okay.”

He would be okay.

“Yeah, but maybe, please don’t put yourself into a situation where the universe has to get mad in the first place. Ya know?” She laughed lightly, still watching him carefully. Todd took a deep breath, listening to her words.

He couldn't possibly explain the importance of them to her. He didn't fully understand it himself.

She could ask. She did ask. She _asked._

“Thanks.” He mumbled, suddenly realizing he'd said it aloud. “I mean, like, yeah, no I won't.” Well, he was an idiot.

“Cool, cause I mean like, who’s gonna teach me all the cool werewolf tricks? Martin? Man’s a steel trap. Did you know that there are different breeds? Like he just mentioned it, off handedly, like it was not the coolest thing in the world.” Amanda said, glancing towards Martin as he leaned against the van. Todd's eyes widened, following her gaze.

“Seriously? Does that like, are we the same? Or?” He frowned. “Like actually?”

“Seriously. He said there’s a couple different ones around here, but only told me about two of them. Ain’t that typical? He said you were different, he just didn’t tell me what he thought. Dirk, Vogel, him, and soon me, we’re Loup Garou. And then Gripps and Cross are Lycans. Cool right?”

Todd's frown deepened, something from an old case knocking at his memory.

“Those are, weird names.” He blinked. “Like the gods?”

“Which gods? I looked up both of them, I couldn’t really find anything about Lycans, cause like, it’s the root of lycanthropy and stuff. But Loup Garou popped up this crazy story about something called the Beast of Gevaudan. It’s like, a place in France.” She was frowning slightly at Todd’s expression. “Is everything okay? We can talk about something else if you want.”

He shook his head, Adrien's voice ringing in his ears.

“They're like werewolf gods. Like Ad- the god who, you know.” He took a breath. “He's the one who bit me too. He called me a weird name.” Todd realized that his hands were shaking as he thought about the memory.

Todd shook his hands out to try and stop the trembling, pulling himself forcefully out of the memory before he spiraled. Amanda bit her lip and frowned. She had that look. That look that said she definitely knew something.

“Amanda?”

“It’s just, that, well, when I was looking around, I might have found a word, that, arguably could be what you would call a werewolf. Such as yourself.” She glanced down at her hands. “It’s, um, Fenrisulfr.”

Todd's hands spasmed as he flinched at the word, closing his eyes tightly to bat the memory away. Adrien's voice was loud in his ears.

He was _okay._

“Todd? Hey, I’m sorry. Do, do you want Dirk?” Amanda scooted backwards quickly, glancing towards Dirk, who had looked up at his name. Both him and the other Rowdies were blinking at the quick panic that had come from Todd.

“No, sorry, I'm. It's fine.” He tried for a smile. “Really.”

He would be okay.

“Dude, it is more than okay to be angry and upset. I just don’t want to be the cause. Please, if I do anything, please let me know. Or have Dirk let me know. I don’t want to hurt you, ya know?” She smiled sadly, still keeping her distance.

He tried to change the subject.

“So, uh…” What could he talk about? “The whole, pararibultius thing. Sure how it works with, different breeds? But it like, went away for me?” He nodded his head, more to himself. An idea popped into his head. This was good. “Actually, like, I'm sort of, semi-immortal?”

She would like that.

“Really? You don’t say.” She was still smiling, glancing over at Dirk who had finally snatched a blanket and was walking back. “On your left, bro.”

Todd turned just in time to catch the blanket that Dirk threw at him.

“Partially immortal, and better at sports. Color me impressed. One can only hope I’ll be as cool as you.” She smiled. Todd shook his head, wrapping the blanket tightly around himself before taking a moment to contemplate, and then opening it to let Dirk in.

“It's chill. You're already like, way cooler.”

“Well thank you, but, I’ll still strive to be as cool as you. I mean, big bad werewolf with a dream job and fantastic partner? That’s the goal.” She laughed, watching as Dirk nodded in agreement.

“Fantastic partner that looks good in every color.” He said.

“Oh, of course.”

“I hate both of you.” Todd buried his face in the blanket, shuffling closer to Dirk.

“Hear that Dirk? He hates both of us. You know what they say about hate. It’s too strong an emotion to waste on people you don’t like. He must love us.” Amanda laughed. Todd peeked out at her, sighing.

“You like, suck.” He looked up at Dirk. “You both do.”

This was more than okay. This was good.

“Well, you’d have to ask Persephone about that.” Dirk snorted loudly, burying his head into Todd’s chest as Amanda laughed. Todd coughed, nearly choking.

“Amanda?”

“She smelled really nice.” Amanda shrugged, smiling wickedly. “And you know, she was pretty hot too.”

“I can't believe I'm listening to this.” Todd shook his head, holding Dirk as he laughed.

“Technically, Farah had to listen to it. We didn’t realize she was asleep in the room over.” Amanda laughed, glancing over at Farah who was still chatting with Tina on the phone.

“Is _this_ why you got into a fight with Hades? Or did you piss him off another way?” Todd was smiling now, running his hand through Dirk's hair as he took a steadying breath.

“No the fight was before. He… tagged along.” Amanda caught Dirk’s eye who snorted again and disappeared under the blanket. “Honestly, I think both of them just need a good counselor. It would solve most of their problems.”

Todd was laughing.

“As cool as your sex life is, and like, good for you.” He looked down at Dirk. “I think I'm cool to stay away from that. You know?”

“I get you bro. I totally get you.” She smiled. “Dirk’s a lucky guy. Right Dirk?” A mumble came from the blanket and she nodded her head. “See, he agrees. You’re a catch.”

“And _we_ need to ban gods from the agency for awhile.” Todd raised his eyebrow. “Because if Farah heard you, you were definitely in either the Ridgely or the office building.” They had spare rooms in the office building to sleep in, just in case something happened during one of their cases and they needed to stay over.

Dirk mumbled something from under the blanket that sounded vaguely annoyed.

“What was that?” Amanda asked. Dirk sighed and sat up.

“I said, but I have plans with Aphrodite next weekend. We’re going to look at paintings.”

“Dirk.” Todd frowned. “We are _literally_ in the middle of a case.”

Dirk had never been affected by Aphrodite like… well, the others in the office were. The other Rowdies were even less affected, interacting with her only to ask if she could move out of the way so they could break a table. She seemed shocked, but rather happy.

Farah, Amanda, and Tina on the other hand...

“Alright Todd, when she comes round on Saturday, would you like to try to tell her to come back another time?” Dirk laughed lightly, carefully wrapping his arms around Todd’s middle.

“No way.” Todd was as weak as Farah when it came to that, but did find it odd that Aphrodite's appearance kept shifting from male to female whenever he looked away from her. A wicked grin spread across his face. “I can have the Rowdies do it, though.”

“But the paintings!” Dirk cried, looking over at Amanda. “Amanda, come on.”

“No way, if Aphrodite is coming to the office I’m not going to be helping her leave.” She smiled, raising an eyebrow at Dirk who rolled his eyes.

“Guys!” Todd cringed, his voice louder than intended. “End of the world? Loki's kids? _Priest?_ ” He still felt like Adrien was going to jump out at any time, grabbing him and taking him away from all this. He couldn't stop moving until he knew he wasn't in any danger anymore. Even more so, Priest was out there now, and there was no way he was going to stop until Dirk was safe.

He needed to keep him out of Priest's way.

Amanda sighed and shrugged.

“Fair point. I’ll have the guys keep her busy while we do research. Vogel and her like breaking mailboxes, they can do that instead.” Amanda said, smiling over at Todd. He tried to smile back, only half succeeding.

“Research. That sounds… appropriately boring.” He liked boring. Boring was what he needed right about now.

“Well that’s what happens when you get into the glamorous line of work that is holistic detecting. Do the insurance companies hate you guys? Or do they use your forms as worst case scenario examples?” Amanda laughed lightly, checking her phone for the time.

The sun had gone down sometime during their talk, leaving them all in the fading twilight. Todd frowned as the familiar, welcoming heat started to form in his chest. Dirk shared a look with him, and they shook off the blanket.

“Remind me to change shirts before the uh, you know.” Todd glanced at the two of them. “Don't want to ruin this, I guess.” The shirt was definitely growing on him.

“Gripps would be pretty heartbroken.” Amanda smiled, glancing up at Martin. “Well, I should probably go figure this whole thing out. Maybe see you in a bit? I’m still not sure how it works.” She laughed as she stood from the bench and left Todd and Dirk sitting near the fire. The other Rowdies glanced up, and soon the area was free from any rowdy intervention. Ethan took the opportunity to move closer to Friedkin, engaging him in a conversation.

Farah sighed, looking up at them and whispering something to Tina on the phone. Dirk glanced around briefly at the others before looking back at Todd and smiling.

“How are you doing?” He asked quietly. Todd took a moment to think, actually think, about the answer. Then he smiled.

“I'm, okay. I think that I'll, be okay. You know?” Todd waited with a hopeful expression, searching Dirk's face.

“I do. I really do. And I think you’ll be more than okay. I think you’ll be fantastic.” Dirk smiled widely, holding out his hand palm up.

Todd took it.

“We're going to be okay.”

And for the moment, Todd could believe it. It didn't matter what gods were out there, or what any psychopath ex-agent had to say. This here, with the pack, this was safe. It was maybe the only safe place left, and Todd was glad to spend his time here with them. With Dirk. He had everything he needed right here in these woods.

The end of the world could wait one day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See! Todd's fine! Everyone is here, accounted for, and happy! We would absolutely never do anything to ruin this! -Sam


	4. Happily Never After

The bed was hard.

That wasn't all the bed was, the man noted. It was also cold, the sheets under him somehow chilling him to the bone. It felt off, somehow. Something felt wrong.

He loved things that felt wrong.

The man opened his eyes, and saw something other than the suffocating darkness he'd been trapped in for… how long? He didn't know. He doubted time was even real at this point. What was time, anyway, when you were in the middle of a hunt? What was time while you watched someone beg for you to stop hurting them, or while they screamed as you took the life of someone they loved. What was time in the face of pure exhilaration?

There was someone in the room with him.

He turned his head, squinting up as his eyes focused on the face in front of him. A man was standing above him, arms crossed as his eyes seemed to study his face. The man standing above him was tall; even taller than him himself, who was already towering at six feet. The man smiled down at him as he saw him look up.

“Good morning, Mr. Priest.”

Priest pushed himself up, noticing he was dressed in what looked like ritualistic clothing. He'd never seen anything like it before, which excited him. The unknown was thrilling.

“I'm glad you're awake. We've been waiting for you to come back to us.” The man pulled over a chair off to the side, sitting down a few feet away from the bed. “I'm Adrien.”

Priest coughed; his voice felt like it hadn't been used in months. The very thought of speaking felt grating. It felt painful.

What a thrill.

“Adrien.” He smirked, his whole face still weighed down by an odd sleeping sensation that he had never felt before. “Is that supposed 'ta mean somethin’?”

Adrien shook his head.

“Not yet. We haven't met before.” He rested his arm in his lap, leaning forward. “But we'll get to know each other. I have a job for you.”

“Think you're mistaken, kid. I don't do jobs.”

“No. You work for Blackwing. Spending your time on aimless pastimes, terrorizing children and the like. I know who you are, and what you do. And I set forward my offer again. I can get you a real hunt. With real rewards.” Adrien laughed under his breath, a fake sounding chuckle. “We're looking for something, Osmund. Something important. The universe is crumbling around us, and it takes someone like us to take control in these times of turmoil. With your help, we can gather the tools we need to make that happen. I hear you're good at that.”

“And what am I supposed to get outta this, exactly?” Priest suppressed a laugh, tilting his head. “You kids ain't just resurrecting me for no reason.”

“So you know you were dead. Good.” Adrien stood up, stretching his arms.

Priest leaned back against the wall, the hard mattress under him. Everything felt too loud, too sharp. He would need to hit himself later to cool that down. This was no state to be in. Adrien clicked his fingers, drawing back Priest’s attention. Tilting his head, his hands on the bed as he made level eye contact with Priest, leaning forward.

“I can get you Icarus. And the Brotzmans.” Adrien gave a crooked smile. “I can get you your brother.”

That got Priest's attention.

“Oh really, now?” A harsh laugh escaped Priest; anyone who said that they could get his brother was a cold blooded liar. “And how exactly would you go about say, gettin’ me a clear shot at 'im? Boy ain't easy to tame.”

“With what we're doing,” Adrien started, not breaking eye contact with Priest, “Project Incubus will come running right to us.”

Priest smiled.

“Well. You better have a damn good plan then.”

This was going to be fun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Worry not! We are currently tying the lose ends and will have book three up soon! Hope you like pain and suffering because it literally just gets worse! -Sarah

**Author's Note:**

> Shoutout to my friend Jay for inspiring me to talk about loose ends, and therefore contributing to this whole thing. We have big plans :) -Sam  
> Thank you for coming back for the second part of this series! We have, very big plans indeed! -Sarah


End file.
